Pink Sabbath
by HK7747
Summary: Quinn and Sam & Finn and Brittany are couples to be featured. Potential lemons, if requested. Couplings can be requested! I don't own Glee! It belongs to FOX and the geniuses behind the show! Comment and subscribe if you appreciate! M 4 lang. & to be sure
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own any of this below, it all belongs to FOX and the geniuses behind Glee. I've been getting quite into Finn/Brittany and Sam/Quinn arcs so I thought I would give them both shots in one go... I have started writing this at about quarter after midnight, the beginning of the Monday before the premiere of "Duets", and so I am basing this off of what I can deduce from videos released up to this point. It will bounce from one arc to the other and all of this chronologically. I think the Sam/Quinn storyline is a whole league more likely that the "Fittany" one, but I guess that's part of why I'm writing this... Anyone into Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Star Wars, and/or Assassin's Creed, check out my other story, which has been flowing quite nicely until I momentarily had to focus on a few school assignments as well as writing a bit for a play going on at my school... D: I'll try to keep on top of this and as more comes to me I'll update it more and more... Anyways, enough blabbing on my part, I love you guys for the feedback and I hope I'll be able to continue writing on here and publishing to warm and fuzzy reviews! **

Sam's high school induction to coolness via football was up in flames. There went his chance of not being left out. Of being an outsider. He was slouched down on the floor in front of his locker, itching at a spot covered by his _stupid_ shoulder brace. Ever since the injury, _everything_ had gone downhill. It seemed no matter how hard he tried, how many sleepless nights he spent; his grades were taking a nose dive. For a football player, he sure defied the correlation between football and, well, lack of brain capacity. His parents had raised him with an 'academics-before-sport' mentality, which allowed him to maintain a relative average of in-and-around the 80s. But his marks were seemingly going to be in the sixties by the time the next update comes around, and now that his football career at McKinley this year was pretty much kaput, his parents would find it all the more upsetting that his life was taking a turn for the worst like this.

He sat there, skulking like that for a while, hardly noticing the red-and-white clad form that slid down the lockers to sit beside him.

"Sucks, huh? When all the stuff that was of the utmost importance to you is all whisked away after one seemingly simple mistake..." Sam turned his head and to his shock saw Quinn Fabray sitting next to him, looking somewhat distant.

Sam couldn't believe this. This was _the_ Quinn Fabray: re-instated captain of the Cheerios, president of the celibacy club, and- as Puck likes to put it finely- world-class MILF.

"That's how it was for you? When you were... well, you know..." Sam tried awkwardly, making a dome-ish movement over his stomach to insinuate Quinn's pregnancy.

"Pregnant? Yeah, it was... All the clubs I belonged to that had my reputation where it was all rejected me... all except one. That club was the only thing that kept me from losing it completely. This club lets anyone and everyone in. No exceptions. No prejudice. All the members accept you for who you are and you're able to trust them to always be there to support you. No matter what," she told him, staring across the hall.

"Ummm, Quinn? What club would that have been?" Sam asked, using hesitancy to mask his anxiety at wanting in on this deal.

She turned and smiled at him. He panicked as his heart skipped a few beats. She looked back across the hall and said two words that definitely weren't the ones Sam was expecting: "Glee Club."

"Gl—_Glee Club_? Are you kidding? I won't only get made fun of for getting injured and being a total football screw-up, but also for joining the so-called 'homo explosion'? My almost ground level esteem and social reputation would go sub-zero if I joined. It's suicide."

Quinn raised an eyebrow: "Suicide to be accepted and given just as much a shoo-in as anyone else? Sure, I used to the think the same thing... Then the pregnancy happened and Glee was what helped me keep myself from doing something crazy. Now that I look at Glee Club, I see somewhere I can let go of my troubles, be myself, but most importantly to have fun..."

Sam looked at her in wonder. For someone who was at the top of the social food chain at this point last year and fell pretty hard to the bottom of it after being booted from the Cheerios, she sure was at peace with being involved in a club that was the definition of sub-zero on the social scale.

"I guess if you feel it's like that, then it may not be so bad..." Sam admitted, smiling at her. His heart must have something wrong, because it skipped another beat when she smiled back.

"I'd just watch out for Karofsky and his gang," Quinn said, getting up and crossing the hall to go into the choir room. She stopped at the door, turned back and asked: "Well, are you coming or not?"

Sam almost leaped to his feet, instead preferring to slowly get up for the sake of not looking _too_ eager to follow the heavenly cheerleader.

He came in to see quite the melting pot of the schools cliques in there. There was Kurt and Mercedes sitting there talking about their clothes; Brittany and Santana gossiping about the cutest guys in the school, as predictable as that was; Finn looking uncomfortable as Rachel was in one of her freaky unstoppable motor-mouth one-sided conversations; Matt and Tina being their mushy selves, while Artie disdainfully looked on; and, well... Puck was sitting there hitting on a ditzy giggling bassist with straightened blond hair and an indy rock look to her. Sam figured it was some kind of girls picked up record that he was going for, or another type that he's picked up, something like that.

Quinn dropped back a few steps and put her hand on Sam's shoulder and guided him towards Mr. Schuester (he hoped she hadn't heard his little internal yelp when she made contact).

"Mr. Schue, this is Sam Evans, he wants to join Glee Club," she said, patting him on the back and returning to her seat with Brittany and Santana (who still gave her the dirtiest looks).

"All right, welcome Sam!" Mr. Schue said, a little flustered, but he regained his composure quickly: "Do you want to show us what you've got?"

Sam nodded and picked up the guitar, went over to the band and whispered the name of the song he was going to sing. They nodded and the ones that were needed got ready.

He sat down on the stool in front of them and started the pleasant dry strumming rhythm.

_Well you done done me and you bet I felt it  
I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted  
I fell right through the cracks  
Now I'm trying to get back  
Before the cool done run out  
I'll be giving it my bestest  
And nothing's going to stop me but divine intervention  
I reckon it's again my turn to win some or learn some_

I won't hesitate no more, no more  
It cannot wait, I'm yours

Somebody whooped as he slid it down back into the chorus pattern.__

Well open up your mind and see like me  
Open up your plans and damn you're free  
Look into your heart and you'll find love love love love  
Listen to the music of the moment babay sing with me  
I love peace for melody  
And It's our God-forsaken right to be loved love loved love loved

So I won't hesitate no more, no more  
It cannot wait I'm sure  
There's no need to complicate  
Our time is short  
This is our fate, I'm yours

By this point, everyone had gotten up and surrounded him and was singing with him. Puck had grabbed another guitar and took over the lead while Sam kept up the dry strumming. They cheered as he began the scatting.__

I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror  
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer  
But my breath fogged up the glass  
And so I drew a new face and laughed  
I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason  
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons  
It's what we aim to do  
Our name is our virtue

But I won't hesitate no more, no more  
It cannot wait I'm sure

Everyone danced around as he and Quinn divided the last part, Puck still going on the guitar.__

Well open up your mind and see like me  
Open up your plans and damn you're free  
Look into your heart and you'll find that the sky is yours  
Please don't, please don't, please don't  
There's no need to complicate  
Cause our time is short  
This oh this this is out fate, I'm yours!

As the last note rang out, there was a silence for a minute, with Sam finding a sudden interest in his shoelaces, and was surprised by the thunderous applause coming from all those in the choir room.

He looked up and everybody laughed at his deer in headlights expression. Mr. Schuester stepped forward as they all filed back to their seats.

He chuckled, "Wow, Sam! That was... awesome! Welcome to Glee Club!" he held out his hand and Sam shook it, to cheers from the other Glee Clubbers, most especially from Quinn.

Sam puzzled: Could it be that Quinn Fabray of the: 'date for reputation' persuasion was into him? He shook his head. He had enough going on at the moment, there was no way he could get involved in something like that. He then zoned back in as he realized Mr. Schue was speaking.

"Your Glee Club assignment for this week is to put together a duet assignment." There were murmurs of interest as everyone began to gravitate to their usual partners. But Mr. Schue had more to say: "_And_, I'm going to make this a competition. The winning group get to pick a song for Regionals! Go on now!"

Sam sat there a bit dumfounded. He didn't know who to pick. He couldn't pick Quinn, it was possible that she was playing him, Finn was already sitting there as Rachel rifled off duet ideas, Mike just looked as dumfounded as his teammates as Tina was also listing ideas. Puck was telling Mr. Schue that he had a family commitment that would see him gone for a few weeks. Sam had no idea what to do.

Thankfully, that was done for him. He felt a light tap on his shoulder and spun, expecting Quinn, only to be confronted with Kurt.

"Hello there Sam, I'm Kurt. I couldn't help but notice you seemed at a loss for who to have as a partner and I wanted to offer my services."

Sam looked around at Quinn, who seemed absorbed in the round of gossiping with the other two Cheerios. He turned back and shrugged: "Sure."

Kurt couldn't have looked happier. He clapped his hands a little, which was kinda weird: "Meet me at the auditorium after tomorrow's Glee club practice."

For the rests of practice, Mr. Schue had people suggest ideas for duets and Sam had them all written down as well as a few of his own ideas by the time Glee practice was over. As he was grabbing his coat and backpack from his locker, Finn walked up to his lockers, hands in his pockets.

"How are you finding Glee up to this point?"

Sam thought about it for a moment: "Pretty good. Kurt asked me to be his partner and when I said yes, he did one of mini-claps and told me to meet him at the auditorium tomorrow after Glee."

Finn frowned: "Why didn't you go with Quinn? Rachel and I saw you two giving each other the looks every now and then during practice."

Sam sighed: "I just can't do that at this point in time. My life's in a complete disarray: my grades are dropping, I'm off the football team, I'm in Glee... the list goes on, Finn. She's head cheerleader, she's got no reason to want to be with a reject like me. She may be playing me. I just can't risk that at this point. Anyways, I can't talk too much now, I've got to get to work. It's my first shift."

Finn nodded as Sam rushed off. He couldn't figure it out: those together were no excuse for not going out with someone, and besides, Quinn wasn't at all the type to play someone.

He grabbed his stuff from his locker and headed towards his truck. He drove home, trying to figure out this puzzle, but stopped as it was giving him a headache. He got back and was greeted by his mom kissing him on the cheek and handing him his customary after-school grilled cheese platter. He hugged her and said: "Thanks mom."

He went down to his and Kurt's room. Kurt was there already picking out the next day's outfit. Finn slumped down on his own bed, scarfing down the grilled cheese sandwiches, checking for any ones that had depictions of Jesus on them.

After a while, he was laying on his back as Kurt was moisturizing, then asked: "What do you think you are doing Kurt?"

Kurt replied immediately: "Moisturizing, of course. I would've thought that despite your aversion to such techniques you would have known by now..."

Finn sighed in exasperation: "I meant with Sam. What do you think you're doing with Sam?"

Kurt sighed at the name: "Doing a duet. I'm planning to do a mash-up of 'Happy Days Are Here Again' and 'Get Happy', but I'm afraid Sam might not be able to do Judy Garland's part, and screw him if he thinks he doing the Barbara Streisand part. Maybe better to find another song."

"Dude! What is wrong with you? He's only got eyes for Quinn and she's giving him those looks! The last thing he needs is you interfering each time he has an opportunity to get closer to her!"

Kurt cut across him: "Finn! Are you so homophobic that you feel a constant urge to foil each of my romantic advances? I can't believe you! I thought that when you moved in that you would be cool with it and it seemed like you were, until now!" He was weeping by the end of it.

Finn felt bad. Like _real_ bad. He resolved that any apologies he would attempt would not work and that time was the only resolution to this. So he turned off his lights and turned so as to shield his eyes from the ones Kurt still had on.

Sam walked in the auditorium at 4:32, a few minutes after Glee had finished. He set his bag down on the already-lit stage and got his guitar out and started playing 'Billionaire' when Kurt sat down next to him. Sam abruptly stopped and turned to him.

"So... what song do we want to do? Not a lot of the songs that were suggested had two dude parts in it..." Sam said a little awkwardly.

Kurt laughed a little: "Oh, Sam, that's not necessary. My range is more that of a girl's anyways. Does that help?"

"Ummm... well, narrowing that down to duets that aren't romantic-"

"And why shouldn't it be?" Kurt cut across abruptly.

Sam scratched his head awkwardly. "Look, I... Holy shit!" he had just seen his watch, "I gotta go, dude, or else I'm gonna be late for work! So, uhhh, we'll... work things out tomorrow... right?"

He didn't wait for an answer. He sprinted out of the auditorium full-tilt. Kurt sighed and swung his legs back and forth as he sat on the edge of the stage.

As Sam was at his locker the next day, he got tapped on the shoulder. He spun around and saw Kurt standing there.

"Holy shit, dude! Stop doing that! It scares the shit out of me!" Sam yelled.

"So, I've been thinking, and I thought since you seem to like the works of one Jason Mraz, I thought we could do his duet song 'Lucky' for ours. Okay?" he started walking away, then turned back: "We are going to rock this!"

Sam stood there helplessly. Then something Kurt said sparked an idea in his head. He walked up to Quinn at her locker.

"Hey, Q! How's it going?" he said brightly.

"Oh, so it's 'Q' now? So you're now at ease with being all bright and perky because of your _boyfriend_?" she spat back.

Sam was a little hurt by her tone, but then countered with the same vehemence: "He's _not_ my boyfriend, never has been, isn't and never will be. I'm just not into that kind of thing! He kinda asked me to do a duet with him for the project and I didn't see anyone approaching me!"

"You could've asked me!" Quinn shouted back.

"You seemed pretty pre-occupied with your whole gossip update! And plus, why do you think I'm standing here right now?" his tone softened with the last part.

"Now you're falling back to me now that you don't want to be his partner? Is that it? Am I always going to be a Plan B?" Quinn shouted.

"What are you going on about, Quinn? I want you to do a duet with me! Please?"

She was breathing heavily. "Fine. Don't expect me to stick around too much, though."

"Thank you, Quinn. Meet me in the science class down the hall from the choir room during Glee." Sam said, running off.

He looked high and low for Kurt, and finally found him talking with Mercedes.

"Hiya Kurt, can I talk with you, like just the two of us?" Sam asked breathlessly.

Kurt's eyes widened and he stammered: "Uh, yeah, uh, sure."

When they had reached a relatively eavesdropper-free area, Sam turned to face him.

"Kurt, I'll just come straight out and say this: I don't want to be your duet partner anymore for Glee. Okay? I appreciate that you were all for including me and all, but just... I don't feel I'm quite ready to be thrown in too quickly for a Glee assignment. I'm sorry." And with that he walked off, leaving Kurt standing there, dumbstruck, a single tear tracing a trail down his cheek.

"I love astronomy, makes all my problems seem so small. That there's Venus, planet of Looove." Sam said, jokingly making the word 'love' sound all seductive.

Quinn looked up at the planet he pointed to: "Mars. Planet of War," she corrected.

Sam almost face-palmed at his lack of brains in this hard time.

"Which one are we on?" he asked, looking at her.

"Earth. I wanted to come back to it, to talk to me about duets. Tell me _why_ I should be singing with you?" she looked expectantly at him.

"Okay," he said, picking up his guitar. "Well, for starters, choreography. Singing will be easy so I'll... start playing," he said spinning around to face her and started strumming random chords.

She looked unimpressed, he smiled then said: "Now, get behind me." She rolled her eyes at that but still smiled. He nodded and repeated: "Get behind me." She kept her eyes on his in a sceptical gaze and complied slowly.

"Good. Now grab my hands," he said, smiling. She scoffed and looked away, still smiling. "And start swaying." She rubbed her temples in joking exasperation.

"And now here's the cool part," he said as he stopped playing. "Give me your hand." He grabbed it as she extended it. He looked at her: "Do you know how to play?" She shook her head. He brought her hand up to the neck of the guitar. "It's easy." He muttered stuff like "There, and there" as he showed her a few chord shapes. "Just like that. Now do it fast back and forth. There you go." He said as he started strumming.

He slowly stopped strumming as he looked up at her and she held his gaze. He started leaning in slowly and just as their foreheads connected, she stepped back: "No. No, I can't do this. This year's about me, and don't say that I'm selfish because you have no idea how much I've given."

He stammered, and she cut across him: "I've been down this path before, I know this feeling well. Like I need you." She turned away. "Duets don't work for me, and I don't need you. What I _need_ is a way to keep Santana off my heels. What I _need_ is a way to-"

He kept saying: "Sorry" over and over on top of her rant.

"-I need to start learning to ignore people." She looked back at him.

"I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't have tried that." He said, looking as ashamed as he sounded.

"I'm sorry. I, uh, made a mistake, and... I don't want to sing with you." And with that she walked away.

He looked up in exasperation as she left. "Stupid Mars."

**Let me know what you guys think and if I should keep going! I will still write the rest, and will post it if wanted and when available! Positive comments and (polite) constructive criticism and requests are welcome!**


	2. Chapter 2

Sam was in the weight room a few days later, the day before the Glee assignment presentations, practicing on the punching bag when Finn stormed in.

"You tried to kiss her? Major Glee party foul, dude. What happened?" Finn asked.

Sam sighed and gave the bag a punch as Finn held it: "We were practicing, and there was just this... moment as I was helping her with one of the parts we were doing, then we just had this intensely deep eye-gazing going on, then when I went for it, she backed up and said something to the effect of 'this year's about me, I can't do this, I can't sing with you'. All that jazz."

Sam looked distant and hurt. He stepped away from the punching bag and told Finn: "If anybody needs me, I'm in the Auditorium." As he walked by Finn, he saw that Sam's eyes were watery.

Finn felt horrible for him. And while sympathizing with Sam for what he was going through, that's when he had what he considered to be the best idea he's ever had, even better than the idea of peanut butter-pepperoni-and chilli pizza.

He left the weight room and headed for Quinn's locker. She was standing there, replacing some books from her arms with ones from inside her locker in rather sluggish and distant movements.

Finn walked up and said: "What the hell are you doing, Quinn? You realize that we risk losing Sam, right? His morale is at an all-time low. Trust me, he's not far from contemplating... dangerous stuff."

Quinn turned to him, revealing puffy, red eyes: "You think I had fun rejecting him? It has been just as hard on me if not more than on him! Finn, why do I have to go against my heart? After all the smart decisions my heart got me into last year, I have to go against it, and up until now, I'm doing fairly well, Quinn! A little heartbreak here and there is nothing compared to the difficulties of child-bearing and rejection by one's parents!" By now she was yelling over her tears.

"QUINN! Get a hold of yourself, alright? I know you regret some of the decisions you made last year, but mistakes, no matter how big they are, are there for us to learn from. We will always make mistakes, no matter how much we try to avoid it. Sometimes going with what your heart says isn't such a bad thing. Besides, Q, you've broken enough hearts of the people close to you to last you awhile. If I need to make a big decision, I find going to the Auditorium helps clear my mind. You should give it a shot, 'kay Q?" he asked, patting her on the shoulder.

She nodded, pushing back the tears. "I think I'll take that advice Finn. And for someone with your grades, that was very philosophical, Finn."

He grinned: "You don't need to be Steven Hawking to be Socrates." He then cringed at the meaning of his comparison. Then muttered: "Sorry, Artie. Yeah, bad example."

Quinn rolled her eyes, and laughed. She gave Finn a hug then headed for the Auditorium. Finn silently celebrated as Phase 1 of his plan worked a charm. He headed for the entrance to the mini balcony to watch how things went.

Quinn walked in below and stopped in her tracks as she saw Sam up on the stage singing "Callin' U" by Outlandish while playing the piano part and accompanied by a drum track.

She strode forward cautiously, comprehending the meaning behind the song. She went up the steps silently, with his back to her. She walked at the same, slow pace. When she reached him, she gently laid her hand on his shoulder and when his head flew up to see who it was, she leaned down and kissed him.

They stayed like that for a minute or so. When they broke apart, Quinn spoke in a breaking voice: "I made a mistake, Sam. I'm sorry for bailing out on you like that. I thought that after all those things that happened to me because I followed my heart last year, I thought that if I didn't follow it, things would get better. It really seemed like it was working, then I met you and got to know you and see how similar your current position and my former one can relate. Except maybe that you didn't have to shove a baby out of your nether regions, and hopefully won't have to. A wise person told me that mistakes are there for us to be made and that they are made so that we learn from them in the hope that we won't make the same mistake in the future. I noticed that my mistake wasn't so much falling in love, but rather making decisions that led to people I care about having their hearts broken. Too often has that happened, and I was hoping I could undo the wrong I did to you."

Sam smiled gratefully at the (wordy) apology and offer for them to go out. "Thank you." He said simply. He stood up abruptly: "In that case, we have a number to put together for Glee for tomorrow! Do you want to come over to my place or vice versa for us to practice?"

Quinn laughed at the rush he was suddenly in, a laugh Finn hadn't heard from her, not even when they were dating. It wasn't the exasperated 'god, you're such a tool' laugh, nor the empty laugh she let out last year after her life took a turn very much for the worse; this was a laugh that was so sweet and innocent, it was hard not to join in. And join in did Sam. It took all of his willpower for Finn to not join in. Because it would be weird if they found out they had just hooked up under his eyes.

"Your place. Let's go" Quinn laughed, then yelped as Sam picked her up, bridal style and ran her out the Auditorium.

_Best. Matchmaker. Ever. It's like I'm some love expert, or whatever. I'm the quarterback of love_, Finn thought, then shook his head as those corny thoughts came up.

"All right guys, today is the day. The day we figure out, who are the masters or mistresses of the art of duets. I'll give you guys a few minutes to get ready. Any volunteers for first?" Mr. Schue said, looking around.

Finn had grabbed Rachel's arm to keep it from going up instinctively. He shook his head, then leaned over to whisper: "Listen, I know how much winning means to you, but I think to make Sam feel more comfortable in Glee, we should throw it."

Rachel's eyes widened in horror of what he was suggesting, but then reasoning dawned on her and she silently nodded, apparently still uneasy about the thought of losing.

"And besides, we'll give others the chance to go first this time." Finn finished and was afraid that was the breaking point for Rachel, but apparently she was able to keep herself from exploding.

Santana and Mercedes had gone the other day, and so had Kurt, as well as Tina and Mike. Artie dropped out of the running after the whole run-in with Brittany. That left Finn and Rachel and Quinn and Sam.

According to their plan, Finn and Rachel performed their song choice, in the most offensive way they could find. By the end, everybody was in shock of what they did. Mike clapped once hesitantly, only for Tina to further discourage him from doing so.

"Look, do I even need to say it?" Mercedes asked.

"That was, like, rude," Sam chipped in.

"_Really_ rude," Tina corrected.

"I wanted to punch you both in the face," Quinn said, barely able to control herself.

"They're right guys, it's a great song, but the way you chose to represent it is inappropriate," Mr. Schue interjected sombrely.

Both Finn and Rachel blabbed some shock at that opinion, then sat down.

"Anybody else for today?" Mr. Schue asked, then Sam and Quinn got up. "All right."

Sam put his guitar on: "Well, I'm really excited and I couldn't have asked for a better partner."

And with that Quinn shaped the chords for the intro and he strummed them.

_Do you hear me? I'm talking to you  
Across the water across the deep blue ocean  
Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying_

_Boy I hear you in my dreams  
I feel your whisper across the sea  
I keep you with me in my heart  
You make it easier when life gets hard_

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
Lucky to be coming home again  
Ooh ooh ooh  
_Finn and Rachel were taken aback by the performing chemistry the two had, maintaining deep eye contact and gave off a vibe of intent with the lyrics of the song. Finn glanced around and saw that everyone save Santana had a pleasant smile on their face.

_They don't know how long it takes  
Waiting for a love like this  
Every time we say goodbye  
I wish we had one more kiss  
I'll wait for you I promise you, I will_

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
Lucky to be coming home again_

_Lucky we're in love in every way  
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed  
Lucky to be coming home someday_

_And so I'm sailing through the sea  
To an island where we'll meet  
You'll hear the music fill the air  
I'll put a flower in your hair_

_Though the breezes through trees  
Move so pretty you're all I see  
As the world keeps spinning 'round  
You hold me right here, right now_

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
Lucky to be coming home again_

_I'm lucky we're in love in every way  
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed  
Lucky to be coming home someday_

_Ooh ooh ooh  
Ooh ooh ooh, ooh_

And with that, everyone applauded, even Santana, though begrudgingly, even after her comment of "So freaking charming." Finn's experienced eyes also caught the delaying of the instant where Sam and Quinn had to let go of the other's hand.

"All right, so there have been some amazing presentations and some... not so amazing... So I'll put it down to a vote." Mr. Schuester handed out slips of scrap paper for them to write their vote on.

Once he had gotten all the votes tallied up, Mr. Schuester spun around to announce.

"So it was a hard decision, seeing as how almost everybody voted for themselves, even those not participating, but in the end we do have a winner. By two votes... Sam and Quinn!"

Most groaned in mild disappointment, however Santana jumped up in anger, ready to make a repeat of the other week's hallway antics, only to be held back by Mercedes.

"There you go, a coupon for free dinner at Breadsticks, and you guys will have the privilege of picking one of our numbers for Regionals."

Sam whooped as he held the certificate aloft.

"I know what it's like to have a secret you can't tell anyone..." Sam said over dinner, after once again making a fool of himself, but recovering with his admitting Quinn's courage to bounce back from last year.

Quinn, started shaking her head and rubbing her temples, muttering "oh, no, no, no..." then she looked up and leaned forward: "So.. are you gay?"

"What? No! No way!" Sam said, brushing it aside. Quinn sighed with relief. It was Sam's turn to lean forward: "When I learned I was moving here, I thought I'd make a good impression if I looked like Swayze, that people might think I was some kind of surfer..." Quinn laughed, "My secret is that I dye my hair with lemon juice. And I would've gotten away with it if it weren't for Kurt. He's got some kind of sixth sense..."

Quinn laughed again, looking down at her water for a minute, then back up at Sam's hair: "I think it looks cute..."

Sam raised his eyebrows, back in flirting mode: "Really?"

Quinn rolled her eyes again and they laughed. She then reached for the certificate on the table and put it back in her purse.

"Why are you doing that?" Sam asked, puzzled.

"We're not going to use it. You're going to pay," she said, smiling to herself.

"Uhhh... Why?" Sam asked, still not seeing the angle.

"Because, a gentleman always pays on the first date," she replied, finally allowing the smile to break through, and allowing her hand to inch forward and grab Sam's.

"Sooo, for the record, the impressions, the jokes and the Na'vi _did_ work in the end?" Sam joked. Quinn gave one of those tinkling, contagious laughs, her whole body shaking with laughter. Sam leaned across the table and took her lips in his.

"Since you guys seem to like the whole 'competition' deal, I've decided I might throw another one this week. This week, though, it's gonna be Girls vs. Guys, the age-old conflict. This week, your performance is to be of a band only one person in the group has heard of that's foreign. I'm also glad to announce we have another member this week to boost our guy ranks. He's a Freshman this year, give it up for Cody Rheis!" They all applauded as he walked in.

Cody was tanned, had dark brown hair arranged in no particular array of spikes. His eyes were a deep brown. He was a little under six feet tall, and on the leaner side in terms of physique. Yet the V-neck t shirt he wore left little to the imagination concerning a very well- built upper body and seemingly strong legs as well.

"Hi, as Mr. Schue said, my name's Cody, uhh, I like singing, obviously, and I play guitar, bass, drums, sax, clarinet, piano, act, play soccer, write stories and songs, and I think I might have covered just about everything." He had a relatively deep voice for someone as young as he was.

"Do you mind giving us a sneak peek to your repertoire, Cody?" Mr. Schue asked.

Cody shrugged, grabbed a guitar leaning up against the wall and started playing what Sam instantly recognized as Outlandish's song _Aicha_. Sam instantly stepped down and slid a stool over to join him. As Cody sang the main part, Sam did the speaking parts and layering.

_So sweet, so beautiful  
Everyday like a queen on her throne  
Don't nobody knows how she feels  
Aicha, Lady one day it will be real_

_She moves, she moves like a breeze  
I swear I can't get her out of my dreams  
To have her shining here by my side  
I'd sacrifice all them tears in my eyes  
_  
_Aicha, Aicha - passing me by (there she goes again)  
Aicha, Aicha - my my my (is it really real)  
Aicha, Aicha - smile for me now  
Aicha, Aicha - in my life_

_She holds her child to her heart  
Makes her feel like she is blessed from above  
Falls asleep underneath her sweet tears  
Her lullaby fades away with his fears  
_

By this point the other guys had come down and did back up and layering for it. Mr. Schue and the girls were all reacting to the music in some way, whether singing along, swaying, tapping their feet, etc.

_Aicha, Aicha - passing me by (there she goes again)  
Aicha, Aicha - my my my_

_She needs somebody to lean on  
Someone body, mind & soul  
To take her hand, to take her world  
And show her the time of her life, so true  
Throw the pain away for good  
No more contemplating boo_

_Lord knows the way she feels  
Everyday in his name she begins  
To have her shining here by my side  
I'd sacrifice all them tears in my eyes  
Aicha Aicha - ecoute moi_

_Aicha, Aicha - passing me by (there she goes again)  
Aicha, Aicha - my my my (is it really real)  
Aicha, Aicha - smile for me now  
Aicha, Aicha - in my life_

As Cody faded out with the guitar riff, all the other Glee clubbers burst into cheers and applause. Cody was a bit overwhelmed, and then Mr. Schuester stepped forward: "You think you'd be able to jump in right now and be able to work on this week's assignment?" Cody nodded, grinning, and the guys cheered.

"Nope. Heard of them, them, and them." They crossed off band names suggested by other guys as Mr. Schuester watched over proceedings. All the band names were crossed off.

"What about Dananananaykroyd?" Cody piped up. This was all he had said up to this point. He got blank stares at first then it dawned on them that this could be their opportunity. Cody turned to Mr. Schue, "Could I?" he asked, pulling out his iPod. Mr. Schue nodded and left the room, having acknowledged their decision on a band and leaving them to brainstorming. Cody played all of their tracks that he had on his iPod, and he asked for a general consensus.

"How many do they perform with live, and who does what?" Artie asked.

Cody counted off on his fingers: "Lead singer, lead and rhythm guitarists, bassist, a drummer, and a second singer who drifts between a second drum set and front stage, sometimes doubling up drumming and singing, sometimes forsaking the power of two drum kits playing to be able to go and provide shared vocals for some songs. Six in total." They all looked around to count: there was Finn, Artie, Mike, Sam, and Cody, who put in: "But we could double a guitarist with lead vocals." And everybody agreed. Finn and Mike would drum (Mike had started taking lessons in order to find something other than dancing to be good at in Glee and drumming has worked a charm), Artie would be bassist, and Sam and Cody would be the guitarists and singers.

"What song do you want to do Cody?" Finn asked.

Cody smiled and set his iPod to one of the Dananananaykroyd songs: Pink Sabbath.


	3. Chapter 3

***DISCLAIMER* I don't own Glee! It belongs to FOX and the awesome minds behind the series! Nor do I own any of the songs or bands mentioned! FEEDBACK!***

"Dude, this song is _way_ too fast-paced!" Mike said, as their latest attempt at it broke down miserably.

"You're right. I don't think it'd be a good enough song for the occasion of the competition," Cody said, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"What about that other song, 'Black Wax'? It's slower, a lot more pop-ey and catchier, sub something in for the F-bomb in it and we may have a winning song..." Artie put in.

"All right, let's give it a shot. Finn, do you want to do lead? Sam, you can play the lead guitar, which I'll show you, and Artie'll do rhythm and 2nd vocals. Mike, if I were to give you a crash course, do you think you'd be able to pull off playing the bass for this song?" Cody went around assigning roles. Mike nodded uncertainly as he strapped on the bass. Even last song, he had been standing around uncertainly.

Cody quickly went around, teaching each person their part, then handing Finn and Artie the lyrics for them to memorize. He went over to his drum kit, hitting the bass drum pedal a few times experimentally. He looked up: "You ready, guys?"

They all nodded; a few confident, the others somewhat uncertain. Finn took his place at the other drum kit. He had asked if they wanted him to start off on the drums much like the one singer and he thus handed the lead over to Artie, claiming he had too many leads, and then come up to do the backing vocals. They all agreed on the validity of the idea.

Cody tapped his drum sticks together in a 4/4 bar at a moderate pace, then kicked off with Sam doing the lead part and him playing the drum part, the rest sat clapping in time and when the intro came to an end, everybody took up their instruments and began playing their parts.

_Those L. throw their glow to the potholed ground_

_Snap shut as they peer out from a collar_

By this point, Finn had gotten up and was singing opposite Artie, as he looked around, Finn saw that they all realized how well this song was going, and how much they were enjoying it.

_He's wearing your lipstick_

_And drinking from your glass_

_Inside there's a drill shot_

_And buzz through the bathroom wall_

_Taste it from the telephone hear it in the siren wail_

_Write your name_

_In cellophane strips,_

_Across contours of your bloodied mouth_

_See a distraction, Over the black wax_

_Every movement, highlights in yellow_

_See a distraction, Over the black wax_

_Every movement, highlights in yellow_

_From kinky buses to rickets ladders_

_For a thousand foot tunnel and a world underground_

_Step out from your heavy breath crouch_

_Breaking to the point pleased to meet you_

_Take everything she's got_

_And wrap it in plastic, wrap it in plastic_

_Take everything she's got_

_And wrap it in plastic, wrap it in plastic_

_Encase it in song and take her 'cause he comes baaaaack!_

_See a distraction over the black wax_

_Every movement, highlights in yellow_

_See a distraction over the black wax_

_Every movement, highlights in yellow_

_I can see a distraction_

_That mounts this paramount task_

_And its said with such sadness_

_That the thrill is sealed in black wax_

_This ride, so far,_

_Came and went, here we are,_

_When they find you, so far_

_It'll take a miracle, here we are_

Finn and Artie repeated this part again then a bit of a breakdown went on in which they echoed the line "Here we are", then everyone but Sam faded out, and he sat and played an altered version of the chorus riff and as he was hitting the last few notes, Cody crescendoed a cymbal hit.

They all grinned as they took a breather, exhausted from the effort of the song.

The girls, Mr. Schue, and Ms. Pillsbury all cheered and clapped as the song finished. The guys all sat there, panting once again from the efforts of the performance.

"Wa-how! Ladies, you've got your work cut out for you! Awesome job, guys! Good song choice!" Mr. Schue said, still clapping.

The guys got down off the stage and gave each other high fives before going their separate ways: Finn to Rachel, Mike to Tina, Sam to Quinn, and Artie was hanging out with Cody off to the side and having a debate as to which bands they knew about were the best.

Kurt led the girls up for their number, which was a group rendition of the Veronicas' song _Untouched_.

As the song ended, the guys all cheered their respect at the performance.

Mr. Schue clapped and said his encouragement, consulted with Ms. Pillsbury, then spun to speak to the students: "Well, it seems that matters are quite close, but Ms. Pillsbury and I have come to the conclusion that... we are all going for Breadsticks!" he pep-rally called out the last part and the response was what he anticipated, everyone cheering and celebrating.

Mr. Schue leaned sideways towards Ms. Pillsbury and whispered: "Figgins' tab?"

She nodded her confirmation: "Figgins' tab."

As everyone else sat at a mass table, Sam and Quinn sat a little ways off in another booth all to themselves, explaining that Sam didn't mind exchanging a meal he didn't have to pay for with privacy. Quinn really appreciated the fact and after she finished her skimpy Cheerio-sized rations, she couldn't help but stare at Sam as he scarfed down his fettuccine alfredo. As he was bringing a load of the pasta up to his mouth in one instance, he had looked up and saw Quinn staring at him.

He laughed: "What?"

"Nothing," she dismissed, a little embarrassed at being caught staring by him. This wasn't how their relationship worked. She was the in-control one and he the madly in love one. When she looked back again, she began giggling uncontrollably, which caused him to question her again: "You've got some sauce on your earlobe! How did you manage to do that?" she said in between fits of giggles.

It didn't take long for him to blush a deep scarlet as he reached up to get it.

"At least it's not like this girl I babysat a while back who got ketchup _behind_ her ear while eating a hotdog," he chuckled, still a little embarrassed.

The others at the mass table were almost all looking on while this went on and let out a collective "Awwww" in an undertone, as it was evident that Sam was making Quinn the happiest she had ever been, and that it was really as she rightfully deserved after what had happened last year.

Cody looked on, chewing on his lip, his eyes darting around, trying to covertly avoid his eyes watering up. When he saw that he couldn't contain it, he abruptly stood up.

"Thanks for dinner, Mr. Schue, I've got to get back home anyways. See you guys tomorrow," he said all this while avoiding eye contact.

Everybody snapped out of their adoration of the couple as Cody left like that.

They all stared around at each other, already formulating theories: "Does he like...?" Santana asked, looking in Quinn's direction. They continued to put forward their own theories for a few minutes.

It was only when the theories got more absurd and scornful of him that Mr. Schue stepped in: "Guys, listen, I'm sure he has a valid reason to not be in the best of moods at the sight of that. You know, he might have just gone through a bad break-up. I had much the same attitude when I had my divorce. But guys, just because he's gone doesn't mean you can gossip like that behind his back! It's an insult to the privacy each of us has a right to! I'm going to talk to him tomorrow, see if I can give him some words of encouragement, whatever his situation is..."

And with that, the topic of Cody's exit was gone, and was replaced by more regular conversation.

"You wanted to see me, Mr. Schuester?" Cody asked as he walked into the Spanish class after school.

"Yeah, close the door, would you, Cody?" Mr. Schue asked, looking up from his marking.

Cody, complied, a little perplexed. Mr. Schuester got up and walked over to Cody, slapping his hand on the teen's shoulder.

"You alright, bud?" he asked, which got Cody all the more quizzical.

"Ummm, yeah... Look, Mr. Schue, what's this all about?"

Mr. Schuester sighed, trying to figure out the best way to tackle what he was about to ask.

"I couldn't help but notice that you seemed a little troubled last night when we were watching Sam and Quinn. I know how much it might be a delicate subject, but would you mind telling me what the problem is?"

Mr. Schuester winced as Cody's faced morphed in a flash from confused to anger beyond any he had seen in a student.

"GET OUT OF MY LIFE! WHAT IS WITH EVERYONE AND ASKING ME ABOUT LAST NIGHT? WHAT, THEY THINK I'VE GOT SOMETHING FOR QUINN, OR, IN KURT'S CASE, FOR SAM? WELL THEY'RE WRONG! JUST STAY OUT OF IT!" He yelled, spinning away and storming for the door.

Mr. Schue turned back, dejected, to go back to his desk when, instead of hearing the slam of his door, he was greeted with a completely different sound: crying.

He turned back to see Cody slumped down sobbing in a desk at the back of the class. Mr. Schuester approached him, cautiously, sitting down in one of the desks beside it and pulling it beside Cody's.

He waited a moment, then asked, almost inaudibly: "What happened?"

Cody sniffed a few times, then, in a stuffy voice, replied: "Seeing Sam and Quinn together did trigger my reaction, but it wasn't because I had a thing for one of them, it's because that was me last year. Her name was Sarah, a girl I had been in the same class with since kindergarten. The summer before that school year, I finally got up the nerves to ask her out. To my obvious relief, she said yes. Suddenly, we were the couple that everybody 'awwwwed' at. We were already being played up to be together forever.

"We were at a New Year's party and, well, it was your typical New Year's party, but I decided to keep away from the drinks to ensure I'd get her home safe. We were on our way back when she whispered something in my ear that got me wanting to get back to her place quicker. Because of me kicking the speed up a notch, we crashed when I overdid a slippery shoulder. She was sent into a coma because of the crash and died a few days later. I seemingly got out with a black eye and a few cuts on my face. People were wrong when they thought that," he said, lifting up his shirt to show a heavily disfigured upper body, the most prominent feature a huge scar that ran from his right shoulder to his left hip.

"I went around, being called a murderer by everyone in the town. My parents were the only ones who didn't call me one, but they still gave me dark looks. I decided that I'd finish the year here, living with my godfather. I thought that being in a new town, new school, that I'd be able to escape the memory, but it haunts me at night. Seeing Quinn and Sam at Breadsticks, all I could think was how I murdered Sarah; how I destroyed the one I most wanted to be a part of. When I left Breadsticks, I drove all the way back to my hometown and cried over her grave all night." By this point, the tears were falling freely and he was pulling his hair in stress.

Mr. Schue was taken aback by the story, he cleared his throat: "Listen, Cody. We all make mistakes in our lives. Some of us are fortunate that the huge ones come at us later, when we're more prepared to handle them. You're one of the unfortunate percentage who had to experience something like that at such a young age. But, a great thing about our school is that we are all about clearing off the slate and giving people a fresh start. Our glee club is about giving people a new direction. If you ever need to talk, if you need help with anything, let me know Cody. If my experience serves me right, you need a hand from everyone you know. I wanna be one of the first of many to offer my helping hand."

"All right, guys. How was dinner the other night?" Mr. Schue asked as he walked into the choir room the next day for Glee practice.

Everybody layered different responses confirming their enjoyment of it. Cody got up and quietly asked Mr. Schue something quickly.

"Are you sure you're ready for that Cody?" he asked uncertainly. Cody nodded his affirmation.

Mr. Schue shifted: "So guys, Cody has something he wants to say to you guys, so I'd like for all of you to give him your undivided attention."

There was a nervous spatter of applause as Cody stood there, collecting his courage to say what he had to say.

"Hi, peeps. First off, I'm sorry for bailing out the other night on Breadsticks. You may have noticed I had some response to Sam and Quinn being such an awesome couple, and by the way guys, it is so awesome you two are together, really. It's just that seeing them reminded me of when I was with my girlfriend. Now some of you are probably scoffing and saying: 'Drama Queen!', but I do have a story to that."

He went on to relay the story in much the same way he did to Mr. Schuester, even showing his disfigured torso.

He was once again in tears as he was finishing his statement: "So, I wanted you guys to know, so that you didn't think I was being disrespectful of your happiness, or that I had a 'thing' for either of you two, it's just that, it brought up all the negative thoughts that I tried to run from by transferring here to McKinley, thoughts that had me suicidal at the worst points... Thanks." He stood there awkwardly and walked out again.

Finn broke the silence: "That was wrong of us to think all those things."

Quinn chipped in: "We have to apologise. But where is he?"

Brittany had a realisation: "I know!"

They were amazed when Brittany led them to the soccer field, to find Cody hammering shot after shot at the net, smashing it off the crossbar so it came back to him.

He stopped as he saw them walking up, his feet fidgeting with the ball, rolling it from foot to foot.

Quinn stepped up and gave him a lengthy hug. She stepped back and said: "We're sorry that we had thought you had gotten upset for personal reasons when really you had something a lot more realistic than jealousy to get upset over.

Mr. Schue piped up: "What do you guys say to a rematch of the group assignment via a soccer game?"

Normally, everybody would've groaned and said no, but they humoured Cody and all said yes.

Cody laughed and said: "You girls haven't got a chance!"

Mr. Schue "refereed" the game, sometimes shuffling the teams and joining in when it began to get unfair for one team. By the end, they just let the ball sit in the meshing of one of the nets as they were all lying on their backs in a circle at about mid-field, even Artie, who had looked on during the game and was helped out of his chair.

"I never knew soccer was that much fun..." Quinn said.

"Well, we didn't really stick to the rules too, too much... but it can be great to play or watch when you do go by the book, too." Cody replied, following a solitary cloud.

Sam turned in Cody's direction: "When are soccer tryouts?"

"They _were_ supposed to be this Friday, but the former coach had a nervous breakdown and quit."

"_I _could coach it." Everybody started as Mr. Schuester chipped in.

"No disrespect meant, Mr. Schue, but how much do you know about soccer?" Cody asked.

"None taken and I played it during college. That's where I picked up my Spanish. There were several Latin players on the team and they taught me Spanish. I had gotten in thanks to a soccer scholarship, believe it or not. I'll talk to Figgins and see if Coach Beiste will approve of having the team restored and I'll hopefully have those try-outs back up by Friday," and with that he got up and jogged back towards the school.

"Are you sure about this, Schue?" Figgins asked, already typing in the eventual costs the re-instating of the team would cost.

"Yes, Principal Figgins, I'm sure of it... What'll it come to?"

"Quite good, Schue, it's just that we were supposed to get new jersey's this year, but the coach cancelled it once he had his nervous breakdown. We'll have to order new jersey's, Schue. The athletic fund can take care of that, as well as the funds needed for trips and such. I'm good with it, what about you, Shannon?"

Coach Beiste nodded her approval: "It'll keep the guys who do go out from football in shape, maybe even improve their kicking. I'm game."

Mr. Schue grinned.

When he walked into the choir room, he walked straight up to the Cheerio trio.

"How would you ladies like the idea of designing our soccer team's jerseys for this year?" he asked them, overwhelmed as they practically tackled him in thanking.

"I like it. I like it a lot." Mr. Schuester nodded his approval as the shipment of both uniforms came in. He trusted the girls' judgement and had them place the order without consulting him on the design.


	4. Chapter 4

***DISCLAIMER* I don't own Glee! A majority of the characters depicted herein are the creations of the awesome people behind Glee. I'm sorry if some might be upset that there's a "soccer-fic" made into this, it's just that it's my favourite sport and I thought of some quite good ideas for hook-up moments [hint-hint, nudge-nudge]... Anyways, as per usual, feedback is welcome, it's all helping me become a better writer and be able to deliver a better story for you guys/girls to read! Also, if anyone's interested in any writing collabs, PM me and I'd be really interested in doing a collab here and there!***

It was the day of their first game of the regional high school soccer league, and a home game for the McKinley Titans.

And the team couldn't find their captain...

"Where the hell is Cody?" Mr. Schuester burst out, on edge.

"Mr. Schue, I saw him in the halls this morning, he'd never miss this for the world!" Finn said, fiddling with the straps on his goalie's gloves.

Sam had an idea: "I think I know where he might be..." he ran off, the studs on his cleats producing a tapping sound as he ran over concrete and then the floors of McKinley High. He finally came to the auditorium to see Cody in full gear on the stage, singing My Darkest Days' _Can't Forget You_.

_When all is said and done you're the only one_

_When all is said and done you're the only one_

_You're the only one_

_Whoever said this pain_

_Would ever go away_

_Didn't know what it meant to_

_Be here without you_

_Is everything you see_

_Reminding you of me?_

_Does it hurt when you breathe too?_

_Cuz it does when I do._

_When anybody says your name_

_I wanna run away_

_I keep remembering_

_I can't forget you_

_It doesn't matter what i try_

_it happens anyways_

_Its been forever_

_and I can't forget you_

_With every single day_

_It won't go away_

_The way i feel about you_

_And when its said and done_

_You're the only one_

_And I can't regret you_

_So i can't forget you_

_When all is said and done you're the only one_

_When all is said and done you're the only one_

_You're the only one_

_I hate to feel this way_

_My days all feel the same_

_And yesterday was proof_

_That tomorrow will too_

_No matter what they say_

_I can't drink it all away_

_Cuz all that i do_

_Is think about you_

_Is think about you_

_When anybody says your name_

_I wana run away_

_I keep remembering_

_I can't forget you_

_It doesn't matter what i try_

_it happens anyways_

_Its been forever_

_and I can't forget you_

_With every single day_

_It won't go away_

_The way i feel about you_

_And when its said and done_

_You're the only one_

_And I can't regret you_

_So i can't forget you_

_Stop haunting my dreams_

_Please set me free_

_Stop haunting my dreams_

_Please set me free_

_You're the only one_

_When anybody says your name_

_I wana run away_

_I keep remembering_

_I can't forget you_

_It doesn't matter what i try_

_it happens anyways_

_Its been forever_

_and I can't forget you_

_With every single day_

_It won't go away_

_The way i feel about you_

_And when its said and done_

_You're the only one_

_And I can't regret you_

_So i can't forget you_

_Stop haunting my dreams_

_Its been forever_

_and i can't forget you_

_Please set me free_

_Its been forever and_

_I can't forget you_

Sam silently walked up, got on stage and patted Cody on the shoulder.

"Everyone's looking for you," he said simply. "We gotta get out there and kick some major ass. Not that big of a crowd, mainly people we begged to attend."

Cody nodded, walked over to his sports bag and tucked in the picture frame he had held in his hand while he had sung the song, a picture of him and some girl. Sam had the common sense not to ask any questions.

When they go back down to the field, the other team had arrived and began warming up. Naturally, it just had to be Carmel High, McKinley's rivals in pretty much anything. To the Glee Clubbers' surprise, they recognized Jesse St. James wearing Carmel's armband.

Will Schuester was nervous. He had no problem getting up on stage to sing, dance, and act, whatever. He had no problem with getting up in front of a class and teach them all a language they were bound to forget once they had written the final exam. No, he was scared to coach a high school soccer team. In attendance were Principal Figgins, Coach Beiste and surprisingly Sue Sylvester, though the latter was probably there to figure out more witty insults about how the floodlights hit his hair and whatnot.

Artie, Kurt, and all the girls from Glee Club had turned up to watch the other guys in Glee play. That's what Glee was about. The guys looked up at their fellow Gleeks and waved to them, to enthusiastic response.

Mr. Schue called them in for the starting line-up: "All right guys, the first half is yours to play. We'll start with a 4-4-2 formation. Sam and Cody up front, then Mike and Puck on the wings, you guys decide who wants which... and Finn in net, all right? Bring it in guys."

They all laid their hands on top of the other. They sat there, breathing out their anxiety, then Cody piped up: "TITANS ON THREE! ONE, TWO, THREE!-"

"TITANS!" and with that they broke up the circle and everybody took up their positions.

The referee counted the players, checked the goalies were ready, then blew the whistle for the start of the game.

The Titans, wearing cherry red jerseys with white collars and white shorts, kicked off the game against Carmel, who wore all-black kits.

Puck, who had gotten back just in time for try-outs and made the team, carried the ball up the wing in an early attack, breezing past opposition players before looping in a cross for the forwards. The cross was a little high for Cody, who still managed to get quite an impressive spring to the ball, and so it dropped for Sam, who directed an awkward looping header to goal.

Everybody was standing up, waiting to see the result of the header. They nervously fidgeted as it came down, with the Carmel goalie rooted to the spot watching the ball drop. They all groaned as it _just_ cleared the crossbar. The Titans tracked back as Carmel set up a goal kick.

The next little spell of the game continued in the vein of a tug-of-war, with each team attacking and counter-attacking and subsequently counter-counter-attacking. All those chances went to nothing. McKinley's missed opportunities were mostly just off-target, whereas Carmel's accurate shooting had Finn working hard to keep the ball out, forcing several impressive diving saves out of the resident giant.

On one of McKinley's counter-attacks, Cody turned on the flair. As the ball rolled to him and with his back to the opposition end, he back-heeled the ball around the corner to Sam, who gave it back to him, only for Cody to attract Sam's marker's attention, which gave him the opportunity to play Sam in onto goal.

The crowd was once again on the edge of its seat as Sam dribbled the ball to goal at full-tilt. As he reached the 'D', the goalie decided to rush him, but Sam being as cool and composed as he was, evaded the goalie's hurtling figure with the drop of a shoulder and easily slotted the ball home, giving McKinley its first goal of the season. As Sam held out his arms towards the crowd in celebration, Cody rushed up and vaulted onto Sam's shoulders in celebration. Sam's other teammates rushed up and they huddled around Sam, patting backs and high-fiving.

They all trooped back to their own half, Sam and Cody lagging to make sure the defence and midfield were ready for Carmel to resume play.

Carmel kept pressing their offense until the half time whistle a few minutes later.

The Titans all made their way over to their bench and Mr. Schuester gave his view on the half.

"Awesome job out there, guys! A little tid-bit of information, but this is the team that has won the league by landslides for the past few years and gone on to many subsequent tournaments, I think even going to the National level once or twice. Just because we're up by a fantastic goal from Sam, doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet, got it? We'll start this half with the same people, all right? Cody, do you want the honours of the cheer?"

Coddy nodded, starting the cheer off with having everyone say: "More cheers, more beers, that's it, that's all!" Then yelling: "WHAT TEAM?" to a reply of "TITANS!"and with that, they took to the pitch again.

Carmel started off the half in much the same fashion as they ended the one before: pressing constantly for a goal.

And, to McKinley's dismay, they got one after a few minutes. A lapse in defensive marking allowed a Carmel forward to get played in by a through-ball, which he first-timed under Finn, who had no chance.

McKinley were now on the back foot and paid for it, as they conceded another: a neat give-and-go which played Jesse St. James in for a goal.

Cody was fuming, and that was a state of mind that brought out a terrifying opponent in him. As Sam rolled the ball to him for the kick-off after the third Carmel goal, he immediately took a touch and smashed a fifty-five-odd yard drive, which swerved and dipped wickedly and found the top corner, much to Carmel's shock. Carmel started pressing again, but Cody seemed to be everywhere, intercepting passes and stealing the ball from opponents who took even more than a few seconds to play the ball.

They were down to the last minute of play when Carmel had a corner, which was punched out to Mike by Finn. Mike sped up the left wing and played an outside-of –the-foot pass to Cody, who was steam-rolling through the middle of the field. He controlled the ball without losing stride and turned a retreating defender inside-out and made as if to drive another howitzer of a shot at goal, only to chip the ball towards goal.

The flight of the chip shot had much the same effect on the crowd as Sam's early header had, as everyone silently watched and the murmur of anticipation grew slowly until everyone in the stands and on the McKinley bench roared in triumph as the ball looped over the helpless Carmel goalie and in, securing McKinley`s first win in a few years. Cody ran for the corner flag and slid some ten yards on the soggy grass and pumped his fist in triumph. Soon enough, his teammates slid to a halt beside him, dog-piling him. Cody yelled his lungs out, urging the minimal crowd to raise the roof.

When Carmel were finally able to restart the game, the referee blew his whistle the moment they rolled the ball forward.

The players went around and shook hands with teammates, opposition and the refs. Cody walked towards the bench, his jersey in hand, to many joking exclamations from female Gleeks as to the condition of his upper body, which rivalled Sam's.

"... And congratulations go out to McKinley High's Boys soccer team, who hosted their first game of the season here at our very own Titan Ground. They started off impressively, going into halftime up a goal against our rivals, Carmel High, courtesy of Sam Evans. However, Carmel clawed back to a 2-1 lead against our Titans, only for an inspired captain in Cody Rheis to score two beautiful goals, the first a fifty-five yard screamer and the other a literally last-minute beautiful chip shot, to win the game for McKinley. Their next game is..."

Everyone in Cody's first period Chemistry class erupted into cheers as they heard of his heroics in the game yesterday. As odd as it was for the students to get excited about soccer, it was one of the rare occasions that a McKinley sports team actually won a game, and especially in such dramatic circumstances.

A few Cheerios walked up to Cody and asked about his availability for a date later that week. He just rolled his eyes and turned back to the front as the teacher began explaining an assignment he was giving out to be done in (set) partners.

Cody groaned as he heard this last piece of information. With his luck, he'd be paired with one of the Cheerios (who seemed quite keen on turning his "no" into a yes) or one of the creepy hulks at the back of the class who he caught picking their nose and flicking it at each other. Disgusting.

He was quite shocked when the teacher said he was paired with a girl named Naydeen. He looked around uncertainly, questioning who-.

Then it was answered for him as she brought up a stool and her books to his lab bench. She held out her hand.

"Naydeen."

He shook it, still in shock. Before him stood a shockingly beautiful girl. He had the feeling that others may not side with him when he said that she looked better than the likes of all the Cheerios. She had golden-blond hair and stormy gray eyes that you could get lost in...

Then he snapped back to reality, shaking her hand and replying: "Cody."

She grinned: "I thought so. Bet you were probably thinking you were going to have the privilege to be with the air-headed Cheerios who were hitting on you or maybe the world's biggest geniuses back there, right?"

Cody chuckled and replied: "Yeah, I was actually waiting to hear one of their names... How'd you know? Do you excel in facial expression reading or something like that?"

"Kinda, but I've had that feeling soooo many times, so I know that expression when I see it," she laughed in reply, setting up their lab space.

She turned to him as they waited for their solution to cool: "So, I take it to mean you're the hero of last night's game, that you're 'Captain Miracle'?" she joked.

He shrugged modestly: "It's a team sport, so you can't pinpoint a win on any individual person. Sure, you can credit people because they scored goals, but that's just someone simply finishing off a team effort. There's a lot more to a team's performance than the passes and the goals. There's the engine work in the midfield, and the team chemistry. You can have the world's best soccer players, but if they can't meld their playing styles, then they're about as good as us."

She looked at him in amazement: "You really don't know how to take a compliment, do you?"

He raised his hands in an 'it's-not-my-fault' manner: "Blame it on my parents. They're the ones who raised me to be Mr. Modesty for this millennium."

She laughed. He realized that he was actually hitting it off with this girl. At least, he thought he was. Either that or she was just laughing at how much of a dork he was being. He didn't rule out the latter.

They inspected the results of the Esters they produced.

"Give that a whiff," she said, holding out the pipette with which she had taken a sample of the methyl salicylate they should have made.

He cautiously wafted the smell towards himself and was met with a very minty smell.

"And here I thought you were tricking me into sniffing something that smelled like dirty socks... or worse," he said disbelievingly.

"If I wanted to, you would be cursing me right now..." she said calmly as she shifted through her binder for a note they took on Esters. Cody spotted a guitar chord chart.

"Whoa, whoa, hold up. You play guitar?" he asked inquisitively.

"Yeah, and sing," she said embarrassedly.

He nodded, then caught the tone in her voice: "That's nothing to be ashamed of! You should come out for Glee Club! I'm in it and I'm still getting hit on by Cheerios, though I'm starting to think it's all about my bod..." he said, glaring at one of the Cheerios who was eyeing his torso and midriff. He shuddered.

"I think I might," she said while packing up. The bell rang. "And by the way, it is sooooo about your bod," she said, giving him a joking wink, leaving Cody there rubbing his chin ruefully.

He chuckled as he jammed his Chemistry books into his bag: "How about that..."

"I'm liking our chances for Regionals this year, guys, because I have the privilege of introducing a new recruit, Naydeen!" Mr. Schue, motioning towards her as she entered.

She walked in a little embarrassed at the clapping for her, introduced herself, said about her like for guitar, singing, dirtbiking (here Puck leaned back to the other guys and whispered: "Dibs.", to which Cody replied: "Already called it. Tough..."), soccer (Cody wondered if that mention was legitimate), and snowboarding. As she finished that, Puck grumbled something inaudible along the lines of Cody being a bastard for beating the 'Puckasaurus' to dibs on a HB.

As Mr. Schue thanked her, she walked up to the seats, watching as the single guys cleared and patted seats beside them pathetically (Puck literally pushed Santana off the chair to his right and motioned to it), whereas Cody sat with an empty one to each side with his arms crossed confidently. She grinned and took the seat to his right as Puck darted up to the one on his left.

"Puck, he _did _call dibs," Naydeen said with an innocent look on her face.

Puck rolled his eyes and returned to a fuming Santana as Cody burst out laughing.

Soon enough, Mr. Schue had them rehearse their rendition of _Empire State of Mind_, dishing out solos to even out responsibility in the song.

Once Glee was over, everyone approved of Naydeen's recruiting, as she had a voice that put her up there with the likes of Rachel and Mercedes for quality and versatility of voice.

Cody and Naydeen were walking around the halls after Glee, heading towards the entrance as they waited for their respective rides.

"I didn't mention to you that I was actually at your game yesterday, did I?" Naydeen said as they were in the entrance hall.

"Were you?" he asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, you wear the number 7 and wear Red CTR 360 shoes," she said in a matter-of-fact voice.

He jumped at the detail she put into her justification. "So you were..." he said distractedly. "I'm guessing you saw me walking off the pitch at the end, right?"

"You mean when you were shirtless? Yeah, I _did_ see that... I can see why the Cheerios are fawning on you..."she joked.

He chuckled, then was all business: "Listen, I know this is kinda fast and all, but I was wondering-"

"Yes."

"-if-What?" he asked confusedly.

"I answered because you were beating around the bush. You _were_ asking me out, right?" she said confidently, looking at him expectantly.

"How did you- Wait no, you've been through that before, and you know those habits and vocal patterns anywhere, right?"

She nodded while laughing.

He continued: "How's about the new Harry Potter movie tomorrow night? Unless, that's... too... dorky," he said hesitantly.

She chuckled: "Relax. I'm a Harry Potter dork, too. It sounds great. What do you say we meet up there at 7?"

It was his turn to chuckle: "How's about I pick you up at 6:30?"

"Oooh... _Someone_'s either a gentleman or trying to find an excuse to properly stalk me."

"Maybe both..." he chuckled.

**Eh? What do you think? There are possible spelling errors in song lyrics, because I just copy and paste them from the Internet and can't be arsed to check them over. Let me know what you guys think of the Cody/Naydeen arc that I'm throwing in... And for those asking where some pairings I've promised are: they are on their way, don't worry...**


	5. Chapter 5

***DISCLAIMER: As per usual, I don't own Glee or any of the characters you see in the show every couple of Tuesdays! It belongs to FOX and the creators of the show! I'm starting to get a general rule of thumb that the first four chapters are setting and the fifth is where the lemons begin... YE BE WARNED! (Btw, it's a Quam one...)***

As the month wore on, the Boy's Soccer team cruised to more and more wins and with each one, the next one became much more routine, and soon enough they began a string of games without letting in any goals. When word of their form reached the school's ears and the crowds became bigger and more enthusiastic, to the point that people even came with 'player merchandise', including flags with stylized depictions of some of the players, replica jerseys. Figgins sat proudly as his marketing strategy worked a charm.

As all this wore on, things were taking a turn for the amazing as New Directions were gaining a lot of confidence for upcoming competitions as their numbers seemed to get better and better. No drama ensued in the Glee club, everybody was happy with the state of things.

Mr. Schuester couldn't believe his luck. His decision to coach the soccer team was a catalyst to school happiness. The number of slushied students plummeted to null. Everybody was at peace with everyone. The social barriers had broken as a sports team at McKinley had finally found success and found it by the tonne.

They found themselves top of the table and lifted the league trophy at Titan Ground a week before the league playoff that would send the winner to the state-wide champions' tournament, and potentially further. Being the league champions, they were to host the playoff at Titan Ground, which had an all-time record crowd as every seat was taken and some had to stand wherever they could. It was pouring rain that evening, with Mr. Schue noting that they should use the slick ball and the skip that the ground would give the ball as it would bounce off the ground.

The jersey providers had gone above and beyond when they heard of the team's success, sending a shipment of new jerseys with gold lettering and numbering for future use this year, as well as gold jerseys for away games.

"All right, guys. This is Carmel we're facing. They might've lost the league to us only because we beat them both times this season, but that doesn't mean they don't have it in them to beat us. They'll want to beat us at this if it means fighting nail and tooth for that trophy. We've got an amazing team, here, guys. Let's not let that get to our heads and let's go out there and play the game of our lives," Mr. Schue gave this speech as they huddled under the rain shelter they had over their bench, everybody sporting long-sleeved under armour shirts and gloves. They did the cheer and went out onto the field to thunderous cheers from the crowd, as Carmel was waiting to kick off.

The whistle blew ad off the game went, the rain pouring down and had the players soaked within a minute or so of taking the field. Cody went hounding at the Carmel defender who had the ball, picking it off of him and playing a blind pass to where he thought Sam would be, and finding him.

Sam's first touch betrayed him, however, as he took it too heavily, sending it rolling to the goalie. Carmel launched an attack and pinned the Titans back for the majority of the half, limiting McKinley to sporadic counter-attacks that fizzed out to nothing. Carmel's pressure paid off as they soon scored the opener, a glancing header from none other than Jesse St. James. The McKinley players couldn't believe their luck, and that goal proved to have opened up the floodgates, as they soon found themselves three goals to nil, one of them a fumbled cross from Finn hitting off of one of his defenders and in. The crowd booed them as they trudged in for half time.

"What the hell? I told you guys to give it your all and you all look like freaking zombies out there. Everybody's missing the ball, looking sluggish, Finn fumbled that cross. WHAT'S GOING ON? I told you guys to not let the league form get to your heads, and here you are, playing like five-year-olds!" Mr. Schue's veins were protruding in his neck as he shouted this. He couldn't believe he was saying this, and changed his approach to a more familiar one: "Guys, we have _never _played like this. There's a soccer expression that can describe a game as being a 'game of two halves'. As much as that sounds literal, the deeper meaning is to describe a game where one team is totally dominant and probably finds themselves a few goals up at half, then have the tables turned on them in the second half. Let's go out there and prove that expression right, and bring honour to McKinley!"

As Sam kicked it off to Cody, it was visible to the crowd that this was a different team than the one that played the first half, it was the one they saw all season. Cody showed that by threading his way through the Carmel team by means of silky touches and velvet tricks. As he broke through into the 18 yard box, he fed the ball to Sam, who had an open net now that the goalie had committed to charging down Cody. Sam didn't disappoint as he slotted it home, picking the ball out of the back of the net and rushing it back to the half line.

McKinley had turned up the heat in the game, and it was their turn to dominate the game, and they soon found themselves with a free kick just outside the 18 yard box in the 75th minute of play, 15 minutes from the end of the game, still 3-1 down. Mike stepped up and curled a beautiful free-kick into the top corner. One more goal could win them another half hour of play and potentially a penalty shootout.

They pressed right on until the 89th minute and by then even Finn had come up for the corner they had just won. Mike's corner found Finn's head and the ball rocketed into the net as Finn towered in the box for the header. The game was now tied and McKinley now wanted a winner. Finn came up for the corner in the 4th minute added on to the 90. Mike's corner was cleared by a Carmel player and Jesse immediately sent a long shot to McKinley's empty net. Finn stood rooted in the Carmel box and felt a rush of wind as Cody flew past him and had only narrowly missed blocking Jesse's shot, but continued his sprint to make the save.

It worked in Cody's favour that since Jesse had rushed the shot, the ball had taken a lot of height instead of distance, but it was dropping and heading straight for the goal line. He found another gear and as he reached the six yard box and found the ball just above him, he jumped and cleared the ball by means of a bicycle ball, crashing into the mesh of the net as the ball sailed out of play. He winced as he picked himself up and was grabbed in a quick bear hug by Finn as they turned to defend Carmel's throw. Puck got back and intercepted the throw, bringing it up the wing and bursting into the box, shimmying past defenders only to be taken down by the goalie as he had set up the shot. The referee's whistle blew, and at first Puck thought it was the full-time whistle, but at the 95th minute, he had blown for a last-minute penalty.

The referee also strode up to the Carmel goalie and presented a red card, pointing for him to leave the pitch. Jesse St. James promptly put on the goalie's jersey and gloves and stood on the line as a limping Cody stepped up to take the penalty. The crowd held their breaths. Cody took deep, calming breaths and closed his eyes, picturing the shot he was about to take and seeing it go in. He opened his eyes, staring Jesse straight in the eyes, daring him to guess where he was going. The referee's whistle sounded miles away as it blew and he began his run up. As he found himself a foot away from the ball, he stuttered his step momentarily and saw Jesse flying to his right as he had mistimed his jump. With that, he quickly readjusted his body to strike it to the middle-left section of the goal, not believing his luck as the mesh bulged to contain the ball flying in.

The crowd went nuts. This defied the notion of a last-minute winner. As Cody wheeled off to celebrate, the referee's whistle blew for full time. Cody jumped in the air and pumped his fist as he heard the whistle, celebrating his dramatic winner. He hopped the partition between the crowd and the pitch and, without breaking stride, charged up soggy and all to Naydeen and grabbed her in a long, deep, celebratory kiss. The crowd was jumping up and down, everybody wanting to pat the players who were now all in the crowd section celebrating. As Cody broke the kiss, he led Naydeen by the hand and motioned for the crowd to follow as he opened up the gate in the partition, asking the crowd to join the team on the field as a stage was being set up for the medal and trophy presentation. The local news station had covered the game and a reporter and cameraman hunted down several McKinley players and Mr. Schuester for post-match reactions. As Mr. Schuester was giving an interview, Mike and Puck snuck up with the ice bin, which had all the ice melted into water and dumped it all on Mr. Schue, who simply grinned and wiped his soaked hair out of his eyes and continued the interview, unfazed.

Principal Figgins' voice blared out over the Ground's speakers: "The presentation is about to begin. Will the team and Mr. Schuester please report to stage."

Queen's _We Are the Champions_ blared out over the speakers as the team lined up, with Mr. Schuester getting his medal first and Cody bringing up the rear of the line. Once they got their medals, the players stood on risers at the back of the stage, dancing to the music playing. The president of the Lima School Board Sports organization was handing out the medals, and shook hands with Cody as he led him up to the pedestal holding the trophy. They grabbed a handle each and posed for the multiple flashes of cameras capturing every moment. He then stepped off the stage, letting Cody lift the trophy for the trophy as the cheering climaxed and confetti cannons went off, showering the team with red and white flakes as they lifted the trophy and passed it around for each player to lift. Once it had made full circuit, the players lifted Cody up onto their shoulders as he held the trophy, and they carried him for a lap of honour around the pitch. School and newspaper photographers had them pose as a team wielding their medals and the trophy sitting in front of them.

Once the celebrations died down, they handed over the trophy to Figgins, who went and locked the trophy up in the relatively empty trophy case of the school.

Each of the players couldn't wipe the grins off of their faces as they revelled in the feeling of having pulled off 'The Great Fifty Minute Heist of 2010'.

It was well past midnight as Quinn and Sam came back from the celebration party that Mike held, with Quinn inviting Sam back to her place for the night.

She explained that her mom had gone out of town with some friends of hers for a weekend at a spa resort, and led Sam up to the now-familiar sight of her bedroom, though before it had been for study dates. This occasion couldn't be any more different.

She gently pushed him onto her bed and attacked him, hungrily kissing him, her hands roaming all over his body. Sam was amazed. She was previously reluctant to even make out. Yet here she was, heavily making out with him and heavily feeling him up.

"Are-you-sure-you-want-to- do this?" he said between Quinn's kisses.

"Something about the way your jersey stuck to your body in the rain and the way you looked when you lifted that trophy really turned me on. I don't care what happens next, I just know that I've got an itch only you can scratch," her voice was seductively low, and with that, her ministrations continued as her kisses were now going down his neck. When she reached the neckline to his shirt, she muttered something about this not being acceptable and with that she sat up and literally ripped off the bullseye t-shirt he had on. Sam was shocked, simply by her ferocity, and not that he cared much about that shirt anyways.

"Q-Quiinn! You're an- animal!" he gasped as her trail of kisses resumed, slowly going down his bare chest. Soon enough, she was fidgeting with his belt and in a blink, his jeans were yanked down and joined his ruined t-shirt. His boxers soon followed as Quinn soon took him in her mouth, her head bobbing up and down feverishly and Sam soon climaxed at the intensity of her ministrations. Once he had, she stepped back and quickly had her Cheerios uniform on the ground, and positioning her womanhood over Sam's member. She guided him into her entrance and soon bounced up and down, eliciting moans, the likes of which Sam didn't know she was capable. She bucked and groaned as she climaxed, her walls closing in on Sam's member and he climaxed again, only then noting with horror that he hadn't considered protection.

In answer to his unvoiced question, she whispered into his ear tiredly: "I'm on the pill."

He sighed, relieved and whispered back: "I love you, Q."

She sighed contentedly as she settled her head on his shoulder and breathed back: "Love you too, Sammy."

And thus they fell asleep.

Cody was equally surprised at his own fortune as he found himself in a similar pose with Naydeen draped delicately over his chest, sleeping. He wondered how his teammates fared in similar ways. He soon found out that it seemed the whole drama of the final had sparked some lust in girls, as Puck took the bassist and a friend of hers, Mike with Tina, Finn with Rachel, and, of course, Sam with Quinn. It therefore came as a surprise to him when rumour had it that Mr. Schuester had also gotten some action from a hot supply teacher at the school.

"All right, here we are again. I can't believe how much the soccer excitement took up our attention. We've done well at preparing for Regionals, but we still have to give it our all, soccer success or not. Vocal Adrenaline has maybe one member of it involved in their soccer team, and now that the team's run is over, they'll be going full-throttle to beat us at Regionals, and with Sunshine on their side, it's going to be all the more difficult for us to do that. But we can't lose hope, okay? We have an amazing bunch here and if we put some hard work in, we'll be able to win Regionals, no problem," Mr. Schue spoke to them the Monday after the final.

They nodded their belief, which was especially high due to the guys' enormous ego-boost from winning the final and progressing to the state-wide tournament. They also recognized the truth in Mr. Schue's words and were humbled by it. Mr. Schue was delighted as everybody gave their all every practice and it seemed that with the events of the final, the group had become even more tightly knit.

Mr. Schue was glowing with admiration of Cody, especially. He was like a god in the eyes of the school. He was _the _star player of the team and had performed unprecedented heroics in the space of a few short minutes that put him at the very top of the social chain. Yet, with all that, he played down his importance and preached more and more his equality to anybody else in the school. He refused to bask in the spotlight of glory that everyone at the school was presenting him with. Naydeen had been right in assessing that he seemed to not be capable of being vain. He worked just as hard in class as he did on the pitch and refused any special treatment from teachers who were also starstruck. There were also approaches from officials from professional teams in the States, but he refused the offers, instead choosing to stay and play out his education.

Glee club had a several more people join due to the status of several members and they got some unexpected amazing talent in their midst.

Finn felt amazing. Everything was going amazing for him. Glee was going great. They were getting great recruits more frequently. Preparations for the state-wide soccer tournament were going great. Things with Rachel were going great. Or so he thought.

That reality crashed down onto him as he was heading to her locker after he stuck behind a bit after Glee to talk with Mr. Schuester. He stopped just before the corner, when he heard sound.

"You know that tool Finn doesn't have anything on what we've got Rache... You just can't stop the Jew factor..." It was Puck's voice, and there were kiss-like noises in between every sentence.

Then Rachel's voice came out in shudders: "Noah, I don't think we should be this risky, I mean here at McKinley. There's always a possibility that Finn could be around and see us."

"So? What _if_ he knows what we've got going on? There's no way he's going to find out. You pretty much have to sit him down to explain him this kinda thing."

That's when Finn set his jaw and rounded the corner, fists balled, and there they were, Rachel up against her locker as Puck was kissing her neck. Rachel's head rolled over, eyes closed in the feeling and lazily opened them, flying open the rest of the way when she saw Finn. She gasped and pushed Puck away, smoothing out her hair and clothes. Puck stumbled back and looked to the source of the disturbance. He too was shocked to see Finn himself and sat there for a few seconds, awkwardly gazing from one to the other. Then Finn went berserk.

"What the _fuck_, dude? Can you not keep your filthy hands off of any girl I date? What is your problem?" and with that last word threw the hardest right hook he could at Puck, nailing him right on the bridge of the nose. There was a crack and blood started flowing from Puck's nose as he fell back to the ground.

Finn stormed off, ignoring Rachel's calls for him to come back, as well as Puck's cursing of him. Tears were now flowing freely as he burst out of the front doors of McKinley, heading for his truck. He climbed into the driver seat and sobbed into the steering wheel. He barely heard the passenger door open and close.

"Fuck off, Rachel," he said in a strangled voice.

"I'm not Rachel..." a dreamy, somewhat distant voice said.

Finn frowned and brought his face up to see Brittany sitting there.

"Hey, Brittany. Sorry about that. If you don't mind me asking, why are you in here?" he asked, puzzled.

"I don't really know, Finn," she said, seemingly puzzled herself. "I was going to my car and ended up here."

"Okay, first off, you drive a Punchbuggy, which is at the complete opposite side of the parking lot, and second, you came in the passenger side..." he said, irritated.

"Wanna make out?" she asked suddenly. Finn noted the frequent use of the expression among the jocks and Cheerios. He also noted the effectiveness of it as he leaned forward to kiss her.

They sat there for several minutes, their lips locked and their tongues fighting for control. Finally, Finn broke the embrace and heaved himself back into a sitting position in his seat, while Brittany straightened up in hers.

"So, Britt, I was wondering if you wanted to make this kinda regular?" he asked hesitantly.

"Are you asking me out?" she asked absently.

"Yeah... yeah, I am..." he said, in awe of being able to confirm.

"Well, then sure. I'd love to!" she said, excited.

"But, it's not going to be like that time I took you and Santana to dinner, is it?" he asked warily.

She shook her head slowly: "No. Our dates are going to be just you and me, unless we double date. Or go out for dinner as a group. Basically, I'm going to be exclusive with you, and you know how much of an honour that is, right?" Finn frowned at how elaborate her speech became. When Brittany talked, usually it was short and sweet to say something dead-pan that Finn would usually laugh at, but didn't out of respect to her.

"I'm not quite sure why it's an honour..." he said sceptically.

"Have I told you about the 30 notches on my bed?" she asked, her eyebrow arched.

**I'm sorry to any who isn't so much up for the drama/angst that's going on... I don't really know what possessed me to make Quinn and other chicks so turned on by the whole final win and everything... What do you guys think of Puck starting something honest and serious with that chick bassist? (Potentially thinking of naming her Andrea if she is to become more prominent...) Lemme know! As per usual comment, give me your thoughts on what to improve/things you'd like to see (read), and I am honestly sorry that I haven't quite delved into some pairings that were requested, but I did try to mention some. I am not so sure about some of the ones like Quartie, but I will try my best to incorporate some in a way that I am at ease with... Anyways, until the next chapter! (Which should not be too far off, I might get the chance to write a good chunk tomorrow while I sit by the door handing out candy...)**


	6. Chapter 6

***DISCLAIMER: I don't own Glee! You guys should know by now how my disclaimers go... :P Turns out that manning the door at my house means not being able to catch a break to save your life... so I turned the light off after about an hour and a half... and now I get all the leftovers! Nah, I'm just joking... So, without further ado, I present... Chapter 6!***

Things were still rough and patchy between Finn and Puck, who apologized sincerely and promised him to never touch a girl that Finn was the first to 'get action with' ever again. He stuck true to that, deciding to give things a shot with Andrea, the bassist from the band. It was funny seeing those two together, as Puck had finally seemed to find a match for sass, as his comments got continually shut down by Andrea.

Fortunately for Finn, things were going amazing with Brittany, who wasn't as controlling or as criticising as Rachel and Quinn, she was sweet and Finn felt better than he ever had in any of the relationships he has had.

The Glee Club had decided to do their _Empire State of Mind_ number for Regionals, and were hard at work perfecting it when the weekend of the State wide champions' tournament went on. Figgins arranged for the whole school to tag along to support the Titans' rise through the ranks. Regionals were set to happen the next Wednesday.

The tournament was being held in Columbus and each game was to go on in the 102, 329 capacity Ohio Stadium. The Titan's first game was against a team from Sandusky, which they won 4-2, with goals from Puck, Sam, Cody, and Mike.

The Titans slowly progressed through the stages, picking up another 14 goals in the process, 2 from Finn, 6 from Cody, 4 from Sam, and one each from Puck and Matt. They soon found themselves in the final on the Sunday evening, playing the host high-school for the state-wide title. The home team wore their all-red kits, which gave McKinley a rare opportunity to use their "golden" jerseys.

Right from the kick-off, it was clear that this was going to be a dirty game, and after 25 minutes of a midfield battle, McKinley received a huge blow when their defensive midfielder, an 11th grader by the name of McGregor, was stretchered off with a broken leg. Mr. Schue, improvising, dropped Cody back into the defensive midfielder role and brought on another freshman striker, Julian Smith. The Columbus team dominated for the rest of the half, with Cody struggling somewhat in a more physically-demanding role.

They trooped in at half time, disappointed with their performance so far, and Mr. Schue underlined the fact that they are barely holding on, and that they needed to find the extra gear they seem to find late on in the game and shift to it now. They cheered McGregor's name as they trudged back on, determined to win this more than ever.

It certainly showed as the opposition kicked off, as an attempt at a direct foray was shut down by Cody, who seemed to finally adapt to his new role. The on-fire player took a few touches and sent a pass over the defenders for Mike, Puck, Sam, or Julian to get. It turns out Julian was the one who got to it and fluffed his shot once he was in range, with it spinning harmlessly out of play. The crowd was quite closely half-and-half, as McKinley cheers clashed evenly with those of the opposition's supporters.

The game was tight, as the regulation time ended 0-0. A few more words of encouragement from Mr. Schuester, and they went back out for the first 15 minutes of Extra Time. McKinley supporters groaned as the Columbus team opened the scoring near the end of the first fifteen, and then they switched sides after a short breather for the final fifteen minutes of play.

Mr. Schue was taken aback as McKinley seemed to find a second gear of overdrive, as they were all over the Columbus team yet again and in the 28th minute of Extra Time, they won an indirect free kick some 35 yards away from goal. Mike, Puck and Sam all stood over the ball, causing all the more confusion as to who would take it. Cody stood in the spot where the defensive midfielder would stand during an attack, some 5 yards to the right, in the smack center of the field. Sam rolled the ball to Mike, who back-heeled it unexpectedly to Cody, who unleashed a first-time screamer to net a crucial 29th minute equaliser, his eighth of the tournament, making him top scorer. The last minute was rather reserved and the whole crowd was on the edge of its seat as the penalty shootout was being set up.

McKinley was the first to take their first of five. Puck stepped up for his, setting it up rather specifically, then doing an odd forty-five degree grape-vine shuffle before running up and smashing it home, sending the keeper the wrong way. The Columbus striker stepped up, spotting his then slamming it in just past Finn's reach. McKinley's attacking midfielder, Tannahill, stepped up and curled inside the left post, also sending the Columbus goalie the wrong way. This was followed by a cool slotted penalty by a subbed-on defender of Columbus's. Cody stepped up to take his, and his stutter step was made too early, and his shot was saved, to huge groans from McKinley supporters. The other team's goal scorer stepped up to take the next one, placing it just under Finn's dive. The Titans now found themselves trailing in the shootout, and Sam stepped up for the next shot, hitting it hard into the top corner. Columbus's next penalty was taken by another defender, and Finn got a hand to it which didn't prove to be enough as it went in anyways. Mike stepped up to take the next one, knowing that if he missed, it would most definitely be over for McKinley. His penalty saw a similar result to its predecessor, being palmed into the net. The other team's captain stepped up to take the last one. Panic was running through McKinley's ranks, as this captain had a 100% penalty conversion rate this season. As he ran up, he lost his footing just as he was hitting the ball and it smashed out off of the post, to huge roars from the McKinley supporters. Smith stepped up to take the next one, smashing it down the middle as the goalie leapt to the right. The next opposition player sent Finn the wrong way. Finn stepped up to take this one, sending the other goalie the wrong way and slipping it _just_ in the bottom corner. The opposition's other striker stepped up to take it, a slightly troubled look on his face as he stepped up to take. Finn waved his arms and pointed to his left and dove low to his right to palm away the shot.

They had won the shootout! The McKinley team, who had been lined up on the half line broke ranks and sprinted for Finn as the McKinley portion of the crowd went insane, hardly believing how they had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. The celebration that ensued was much like the other ones they went through previously, with Cody also accepting MVP of the Tournament and the award for Top Goalscorer, adding to the similar trophies he had picked up at the league and cup presentations.

As they were back in the dressing room celebrating, Mr. Schue announced a national final in New York with the local team on the 15th of November, which caused the Glee Clubbers in the team to frown.

"Mr. Schue, you _do_ know that's the same day that Nationals is scheduled?" Cody asked sceptically. Mr. Schuester nodded solemnly.

"The Ohio bracket performs at 2 pm, awards given out by 3 pm, and the final is at 4 pm, so pretty tight on time."

"How long will it take to get from where we have Nationals to the stadium?" Puck asked.

"About a quarter of an hour driving," Mr. Schue replied. "But, come on! Let's celebrate!"

They all cheered as pop started getting sprayed around the dressing room.

"Do you ever feel guilty that you might not feel like you were quite... yourself when you come onto me when we win stuff?" Finn asked as he lay panting under the sheets of his bed with Brittany rested her head on his shoulder looking up at him.

"No. I'm in complete control of myself, it's just I feel really turned on when I see you with that big grin you get when you win," she said, finishing her sentence off with a lazy smile directed at him. He gave her that smile she loved so much and leaned down to kiss her.

Within a few minutes, she fell asleep on his chest, looking as peaceful as ever. Finn sighed contentedly at his current situation. It just _felt_ right. He didn't have to work for this relationship, as he had to for his past ones, he could just be himself and not have to worry. Things were simple. They loved each other. End of story.

He prayed to whatever deities were out there that things could stay like this between them.

"For our assignment this week, I want you all to step out of your element ever so slightly, as far as musical genres of preference go, but still find a song that represents you," Mr. Schue instructed at Glee rehearsal a week before the big day.

Everybody murmured their interest at this. Quinn tentatively raised her hand.

"Yes, Quinn?" Mr. Schue asked.

"I've already figured out a song. Do you mind if I present it?"

"Not at all, go right ahead, Quinn."

She motioned for Brittany, Santana, and Naydeen to join her up there, whispered quick instructions into their ears as they took their places.

_Hot and dangerous  
If you're one of us then roll with us  
Cause we make the hipsters fall in love  
When we got our hot pants on and up  
And yes of course we does  
We runnin' this town just like a club  
And no you don't wanna mess with us  
Got Jesus on my necklace (uz-uzzz)_

Got that glitter on my eyes  
Stockings ripped all up the side  
Looking sick and sexyfied  
So let's go uh oh  
Let's go

Tonight we're going hard hard hard ha ha hard  
Just like the world is our our our ah ah ours  
We're tearing it apar par par pa pa part  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

We're dancing like we're dumb dumb duh duh duh dumb  
Our bodies going numb numb nuh nuh nuh numb  
We'll be forever young young yuh yuh yuh young  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

DJ turn it up  
It's about damn time to lived it up  
I'm so sick of being so serious  
It's makin' my brain delirious

I'm just talkin' true  
I'm tellin' you 'bout the stuff we do  
We're selling our clothes  
Sleepin' in cars  
Dressin' it down  
Hittin' on dudes  
Hard

Got that glitter on my eyes  
Stockings ripped all up the side  
Looking sick and sexyfied  
So let's go uh oh  
Let's go

Tonight we're going hard hard hard ha ha hard  
Just like the world is our our our ah ah ours  
We're tearing it apar par par pa pa part  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

We're dancing like we're dumb dumb duh duh duh dumb  
Our bodies going numb numb nuh nuh nuh numb  
We'll be forever young young yuh yuh yuh young  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

DJ turn it up  
DJ turn it up  
DJ turn it up  
DJ turn it up

Tonight we're going hard hard hard ha ha hard  
Just like the world is our our our ah ah ours  
We're tearing it apar par par pa pa part  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

We're dancing like we're dumb dumb duh duh duh dumb  
Our bodies going numb numb nuh nuh nuh numb  
We'll be forever young young yuh yuh yuh young  
You know we're superstars  
We are who we are

Ow!

The other Glee clubbers whooped and cheered as they performed the song, Quinn doing an amazing job of main vocals and rapping and the others providing great layering and backup. As they struck the final note and struck a pose, Mr. Schue got up and led the standing ovation, but the loudest clapper was a certain bottle-blond male.

"_That_ is what I'm looking for this week. Awesome job, ladies," Mr. Schue said, giving high-fives to the performers.

"I can't wait to see what the rest of you have to show us," he finished.

**Et voila! Sorry about the length of this one compared to the others, this is what I have up to this point, and I didn't want to drag it to get in an amount I was satisfied with. I also wanted to submit it because it's been awhile and if I don't get back on top of this baby, then I might not at all. Next chapter is Sectionals!**


	7. Chapter 7

***DISCLAIMER: Well, I guess by now, you know the drill. I don't own any of the previously existing characters from Glee. I wish I did. :( Sorry it's taken this long to update... I've had a pretty full plate between school, two plays and work. (Stupid work!) Anyways, enjoy!***

"Sectionals is just around the corner and I want to confirm our set list. Okay: Quinn and Sam are fielding this year's duet, and Santana, if you'd like to do the ballad," Mr. Schuester said sleepily.

"Ummmm, Mr. Schue, we're at _soccer_ practice. We were just about to start the warm-up," Julian said sceptically.

Mr. Schuester almost face-palmed. He took in a deep breath. "Right you are, Julian. Ummmm, everyone do two laps of the field, Cody call out a warm-up at each corner."

As they trooped off, he rubbed his temples. Between classes, soccer, Glee, and the nights out with Holly, sleep was a rare luxury. His cell phone rang and he picked up.

"Hey Will, it's Holly," came the bright voice from the other end. Will smiled.

"Hey, babe, what's up?"

"I thought I might pay you a visit during practice... and bring some heaven in the form of coffee. I took the liberty of picking up the usual,"

"I have to be _the _luckiest guy in Lima to have you looking after me. You're an angel, Holly,"

He could almost picture that satisfied ear-to-ear grin as she joked: "Don't ever forget it, Will. See you in a minute. Oh, and I've got some... news."

Will's brow furrowed as he slowly snapped his phone shut and slowly returned it to his pocket, just as the boys pulled up. He shook his head.

"Alright, get a drink, and then we're just going to scrimmage for the practice."

They whooped at the lack of drills and high-fived all around as Mr. Schue assigned teams. Just as they started the scrimmage started up, Holly sidled up to Will out of nowhere a cardboard tray bearing a large cup of coffee and a blueberry muffin in hand. Will leaned over and kissed her, wolfing down the muffin and sipping appreciatively at the hot coffee in the biting cold winds.

"You said you had news... Wait! Wait! Let me guess: you got a permanent job here?" he asked looking her in the eyes for some hint of the answer.

She chuckled: "No, Will. It's much bigger than that..." she paused, gathering her thoughts. "Will, I'm pregnant."

It took Will a second to acknowledge what she said, then it was all business: "Did you confirm with a test?"

She nodded: "Why?"

He sighed, "It's just the last time I heard that from a woman, it all ended up being a lie just to keep me with them. That was my ex-wife, Holly," he turned to see her looking shocked. "I went about that the wrong way, Holly. I'm thrilled to bits." He grabbed her in a hug, with her revelling in the sensation of having Will envelop her in his warmth. She smiled lazily and sighed.

He pulled his arms away slowly: "That being said, I've been meaning to bring something up as well." And with that, he reached into his pocket, oblivious to the fact that the team had stopped and were standing completely silent a few feet away. He pulled out a tiny felt box and spun it round, opening it up and dropping down onto his knee (note the layer of snow that started soaking through his jeans).

"Holly Holiday. I'll admit that when I first met you, I didn't like the thought of how well the Glee clubbers liked the way you were handling things. But then I got to know you, and I was smitten the moment I got to know you better. You've been a slice of heaven ever since we started dating. The best part of my day was going home to see you. You just told me that we're going to have a baby, which makes it all the better for me to ask this question: Will you marry me?" he asked, tears in his eyes from his confession.

She was afflicted with tears as well, her gloved hands held in front of her mouth as she gazed down at the gorgeous ring. She then strode forward and picked Will up by the shoulders. Will started frowning, and then as he opened his mouth again, she laid a gloved finger over it. She giggled, and then said: "I wasn't going to make you suffer any more down on your knee. I'm sure your whole leg is soaked now. Anyways, of course I will marry you, Will!"

And with that she took her left glove off and put the ring on, as Will kissed her and swept her up into his arms and spinning her round to thunderous applause from the soccer team.

They broke apart and Will looked around a little embarrassed, then grinned, saying: "Practice is over early, guys. Go and enjoy the warmth of your homes!"

"I love you Will"

"Love you too, Holly"

**(Sorry, I'm just gonna skip over the whole Sectionals deal, because by now, everyone will have probably seen it. I've got nothing I can add to that.)**

"Alright, guys. Phenomenal job at Sectionals! Regionals is coming up fast, they've had to cram things this year, so let's just get the set list out of our system and get to practicing them till we have each number down perfect. I was thinking Cody and Naydeen do the duet. And why don't we shake things up a bit and give Puck the solo, you guys can decide your numbers. Any ideas for the group number?" Mr. Schue asked, looking up from his notepad, to see Rachel looking livid.

"Mr. Schue, I thought we went through this already! I believe you should-" She protested.

"We _have_ been over this already, Rachel. I told you that you can't have every single solo for the competitions. Like I said last time, we are blessed with a huge variety of talent and I'm afraid that some people here don't get their chance and it doesn't help them when you get all the solos. Look at how well Sam, Quinn and Santana did at Sectionals! Who's to say Cody, Naydeen, and Puck can't do the same!" Mr. Schue had thrown down his notepad at this point, sheets of paper tearing off and floating around the room.

"Mr. Schuester, we _scraped_ by a tie with the Warblers. Clearly, you need my voice!" Her voice had risen in pitch as she protested more.

"SHUT UP, RACHEL!"

Everyone in the room was shocked to hear Finn roar that last part.

"All you do is think of yourself! You want all the solos, you want the leading man! Everything you do, everything you say is all about YOU! You never give a _fuck_ about what concerns other people! We lost a potential recruit at the beginning of the year because you couldn't handle the competition! You bitch constantly if you don't get things your way, and frankly, I don't see what I could've loved anymore! All I see is some narcissistic bitch who is so self-centered that she believes that anybody else getting the solos will be the beginning of the apocalypse!" At this point, spit was flying out of his mouth and everybody's eyes were wide and mouths agape. Sure, most of them burned Rachel every now and then, but never Finn, and never this bad.

Finn sat there, fists balled and panting, and then he stormed out, Brittany making tracks to catch up with him. Rachel stood stock still, shocked at Finn's outburst.

The Glee clubbers looked on nervously from their various vantage points in the green room the day of Regionals as Cody went through an anxious breakdown. It had started as an impatient foot-tapping while he sat on the couch, his knuckles white as he had Naydeen's hand in a vice grip, then blew out to restless pacing and wall-head butting. His soccer teammates were especially troubled by this latest development. He had faced countless high-pressure situations during their incredible season run and charged through it fearlessly and victorious, which intrigued them.

Brittany finally broke the silence: "Cody, why are you hurting the wall?"

"I don't get it. I can be cool, calm, and composed when I step up to take a penalty shot and yet when faced with the prospect of singing in front of hundreds of people, all I can think about is getting up there, opening my mouth and nothing coming out," his gaze was distant as he said this, indicating that there was something other than that that troubled him.

Mike was the first to guess it: "Does this have anything to do with the penalty you missed in the shootout in the state final?"

Cody snapped: "And if it is? How comforting is it knowing that the last time a competition sat in the balance for you to win and you fucked it up? I'll tell you: it's unnerving! I haven't had a good sleep since Mr. Schue told me about the duet!"

Naydeen got up and walked forward, looking resplendent in a turquoise dress: "Hey, babe, don't get gray hairs thinking about how bad you may or may not do in the future. Focus on the moment, live in the moment. And right now, the point you should focus on, I'm telling you that I love you, whether you have the guts to get up there or not. Know that I have complete confidence in you; I _know_ you'll get up there, and you'll sing your heart out. You know why?"

"Why?"

"Because you're a love-drunk fool who'll be holding my hands while we're singing up there. Besides, once you're up there and the light's in your eyes, you won't be able to see any more than the first two rows, which translates to roughly 40 people, and that's hardly a big crowd if you think about it."

"Wow. I guess it's true when they say that you learn something new every day," he said, his trademark lopsided grin finally restored.

"Oh, come here, you big scaredy cat," she said, pulling him by his tie into a kiss.

Mr. Schue walked in, rubbing his palms and licking his lips.

"All right, guys, Vocal Adrenaline's half-way through their number. Sunshine's blown everyone away. Sooo, ummmm, get set up and get ready to sing your hearts out."

As they got into position, Cody walked over to Naydeen and grabbed her hands in his, staring into her stormy gray eyes.

"Thanks, for getting my head sorted out back there, I needed it," he admitted, a sheepish grin plastered on his face.

"Hey, what kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't paint the big picture out for you every now and then?"

He laughed, and gazed into her eyes until he heard the announcement of their number. He took a huge breath and walked into the auditorium, a huge spotlight on him as he began singing.

_Imagine me and you, I do  
I think about you day and night, it's only right  
To think about the girl you love and hold her tight  
So happy together  
_

At this point, Naydeen came out the other door and sang the next verse.

_If I should call you up, invest a dime  
And you say you belong to me and ease my mind  
Imagine how the world could be, so very fine  
So happy together_

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you  
For all my life  
When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue  
For all my life

After this, they layered the next verse and chorus.__

Me and you and you and me  
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be  
The only one for me is you, and you for me  
So happy together

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you  
For all my life  
When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue  
For all my life

It cut out to Cody as Naydeen vocalized.__

Me and you and you and me  
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be  
The only one for me is you, and you for me  
So happy together

Ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba  
Ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba

Me and you and you and me  
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be  
The only one for me is you, and you for me  
So happy together

So happy together  
How is the weather  
So happy together  
We're happy together  
So happy together  
Happy together  
So happy together  
So happy together (ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba)

They finished together center-stage at the edge, their hands entwined and their heads resting against the others'. They smiled and backed up for Puck to take center stage for his solo. He slung a guitar over his shoulder and Sam stepped up with another one. Puck strummed a melancholy chord progression as Sam played a lead part over top.

_It's not time to make a change,  
Just relax, take it easy.  
You're still young, that's your fault,  
There's so much you have to know.  
Find a girl, settle down,  
If you want you can marry.  
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy._

I was once like you are now, and I know that it's not easy,  
To be calm when you've found something going on.  
But take your time, think a lot,  
Why, think of everything you've got.  
For you will still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may not.

How can I try to explain, when I do he turns away again.  
It's always been the same, same old story.  
From the moment I could talk I was ordered to listen.  
Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.  
I know I have to go.

It's not time to make a change,  
Just sit down, take it slowly.  
You're still young, that's your fault,  
There's so much you have to go through.  
Find a girl, settle down,  
if you want you can marry.  
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy.  
(Away Away Away, I know I have to  
Make this decision alone - no)

All the times that I cried, keeping all the things I knew inside,  
It's hard, but it's harder to ignore it.  
If they were right, I'd agree, but it's them They know not me.  
Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.  
I know I have to go.  
(Stay Stay Stay, Why must you go and  
make this decision alone?)

By the end, the audience was a sea of swaying glow sticks as the Glee Club harmonized to provide a backdrop for Puck's astounding vocals. From what they could see in the first two rows, a great population of the audience had been pushed into tears by the power of the song. Puck started up the guitar on the next song. All the girls except for Santana vocalized in the background as Artie, Sam, Finn, and her made their way to the front of the stage. Finn started off the song.

_I only ask of God  
He won't let me be indifferent to the suffering  
That the very dried up death doesn't find me  
Empty and without having given my everything  
_

Sam started the next verse, trying desperately to not tear up.

_I only ask of God  
He won't let me be indifferent to the wars  
It is a big monster which treads hard  
On the poor innocence of people  
It is a big monster which treads hard  
On the poor innocence of people_

People...people, people

Artie wheeled up as the glow sticks were swaying in the audience once again.

_I only ask of God  
He won't let me be indifferent to the injustice  
That they do not slap my other cheek  
After a claw has scratched my whole body_

Quinn came down and sang the next verse.

_I only ask of God  
He won't let me be indifferent to the wars  
It is a big monster which treads hard  
On the poor innocence of people  
It is a big monster which treads hard  
On the poor innocence of people_

People...people...people

The crowd went nuts as Santana began singing in Spanish, her voice being harmonized with Cody's lower tones.

_Solo le pido a Dios  
Que la guerra no me sea indiferente  
Es un monstruo grande y pisa fuerte  
Toda la pobre inocencia de la gente  
Es un monstruo grande y pisa fuerte  
Toda la pobre inocencia de la gente_

People...people...people.

As the New Directions harmonized the last 'people', the crowd erupted into a huge roar of cheers and applause. The McKinley glee club were humbled by the reception as they all were wearing sheepish grins as they went backstage to wait while the voting went on.

"You guys! That was amazing!" Mr. Schue said, walking in, mouth agape and eyes wide. They all rushed up to him and group-hugged with Mr. Schuester as the nucleus. The bell dinged and a voice came over the PA.

"Would all contesting Glee Clubs please report to the stage for the announcement of the places. All contesting Glee Clubs to the stage, thank you."

As they took their place on the stage alongside the Warblers, Vocal Adrenaline, and Oral Intensity, Cody couldn't help but feel butterflies fluttering around his stomach as he awaited the news of who finished in what place. A portly man came up with three envelopes.

"Hello to all, we would first off like to thank all the coaches and clubs for their contribution to one of the most spectacular Regionals this state has seen in quite a while. But we would also like to thank all the audience members for your support of the performers and your role in the judges' decision. Without further ado, I have here the order of the finishers. In fourth place, Oral Intensity!" a mild spattering of applause accompanied them accepting the trophy. "In third place, with great surprise, Vocal Adrenaline!" This drew a collective gasp, with both of the underdogs of the competition left for first and second place. A few of Vocal Adrenaline's members actually broke down in tears at the announcement of their defeat, but still made it offstage respectfully. "And, this year's Regional Winners... McKinley High's New Directions!" Their heads shot up in surprise as this latest development was announced. Unlike last year's in-your-face celebration of Vocal Adrenaline's, McKinley's glee clubbers nodded and congratulated the Warblers while accepting the trophy. The announcer also had another bit of trivia. "There's also an amendment in the Show Choir rule book that allows for Regional runners-up to progress to Nationals on special mention and this is most certainly being put into effect. Both of you are going to Nationals!" It was then that the Warblers and New Directions began celebrating. Cody could've sworn he saw Kurt and Blaine kissing in his peripheral vision, but he had eyes for only one person, and that person dragged him off for a little private celebration. Oh, how hard his life could be some times, he thought, with a smirk.

***And there you have Chapter 7! I'm looking to wrap things up in the next chapter or maybe 2, with them going to Nationals and also have a whole Epilogue et al. A quick shout-out to luckyforchord for the message I got a couple of hours back. When I got it, this chapter was maybe a third done and I hadn't gotten any notifications whatsoever about the story and then I open it up and read it and then here we are, chapter done and that much closer to the end! I just wanted to point out how much the feedback means to me and I really do appreciate the support some have given! Till Chapter 8!**


	8. Chapter 8

***DISCLAIMER: I don't own Glee or any of the characters from the show, nor do I have any claim to any songs portrayed in the whole fanfic! I'm going to have the Glee Nationals in this chapter then have the soccer final in the next chapter and finally an epilogue chapter. 10 chapters is pretty good, right? I just realised that with Chapter 7, this whole fanfic could be published (not going to) into an actual legit book... and with about 9000+ more words to add to it, that will make a pretty decent read! Anyways, I've done enough blabbing, enjoy chapter 8!***

Mr. Schue inspected the Choir room with pride. He had converted part of it into a display case for trophies won by Glee Club and the Soccer team, and it already had 5 trophies in it, which he considered to be a personal achievement, considering they hadn't been there this year. Also there were the trophies from last year's Glee campaign. He was still combing his eyes over the hardware when the Glee clubbers strode into the choir room, broad grins on their faces as they beheld the trophy from Regionals. They all seemed to be walking on clouds as they took their seats in the risers.

"All right guys, I realize that a win like that can get you thinking some pretty over-confident thoughts, and I don't want you guys to be over-confident when we go to Nationals, so I've booked you guys out of the school for the rest of the day, because we're paying a visit to the Lima Memorial Hospital to sing to some of the long term patients there," Mr. Schuester said, to generally good reception, save from Santana.

"Hell's no. No way am I going there," she said decisively, crossing her arms defiantly.

"Santana, I don't care if you have some phobia of hospitals or you don't want to run into your dad, but we are ALL going there."

She rolled her eyes as they trooped out to the bus. The ride over was relatively short and uneventful, save for Puck's spitballing of the Glee guys. When they trooped out and into the reception, the woman by the desk saw Santana and said: "Hello there, Santana. Are you here to see Cristina?"

Puck frowned and nudged her: "Who's Cristina?"

She sighed and said, softly: "She's my little sister. She's been here for the past couple of years battling lymphoma. I guess you could attribute my bitchiness to that. It's my frustration at everyone who gets to be normal while she's suffering. I visit her every night."

Mr. Schuester patted her on the shoulder: "Then why don't we pay her a visit?"

Santana nodded and led them through a labyrinth of halls until they entered a large room with one bed in it. In the bed was a girl, about 13 years old who looked like a younger version of Santana. She looked up lazily from her bed and smiled as her older sister walked in.

"_Hola, pochita. Como estas?_" Santana asked as she sat beside Cristina.

"I've seen better days, San," she said weakly. "Who are all these people?"

"This is the Glee Club from my school. We came to sing to patients here, and they wanted to visit you."

"You never told me about a Glee Club, S. Are you guys going to sing something for me?"

Cody stepped forward as Santana couldn't think of any songs.

"The guys and I have this one, San," he said, pulling out the guitar he brought along. A minute later, grins spread across the faces of the glee club as they recognized the song he auditioned with, Aicha.

As they all sang, grouped around the bed, Santana smiled and laughed with Cristina as the latter sat there, amazed that her older sister's Glee Club were sitting there singing her a song like this. When they finished, Cody took the guitar off and set it down beside Cristina's bed, sitting down on it himself.

"Hey there, Cristina. You're extremely brave to be going through what you are right now. The fact that you've held on all this time tells us that you have an amazing fighting spirit. _Never_ give that up. Okay?" The younger Lopez girl stared in wonder at the adolescent who had serenaded her. He grinned his trademark grin at her, and then motioned at the guitar: "I want you to have my guitar. I've had it since I was your age. I learned to play on this baby here. Think of it as a Get Well Soon present on behalf of the Glee Club."

He pulled out a permanent marker from his pocket and with a flourish signed the body of the guitar and passed the instrument and marker around. Soon enough, Cristina was holding the guitar in her hands, and it was decorated with signatures and various words of inspiration from the Glee Clubbers. Cody got up and caught Santana's gaze as she mouthed her thanks to him, tears in her eyes. They left her to stay with Cristina as they went around to several patients, singing an assortment of songs they had done before and some that were new to their repertoire. Each visit warranted them with a heart lifting smile from the patients, appreciating the company as the students stayed behind to visit with the patients.

At the end of the day, Santana walked up and gave Mr. Schuester a hug.

"Thanks, Mr. Schue. And thanks all you guys for what you did for Crissy. It really meant a lot to her."

"No problem, Santana. It's all done us some good to do something humble like a charity visit to get our heads back to earth."

The Nationals countdown was down to a week, and Mr. Schue sat them down to reveal his choices for numbers.

"With much difficulty, I have pushed through some tough decision making and deliberated a skeleton set list. We'll start off with a duet from Quinn and Sam, I was wondering if you wanted to do Lucky again. Then we'll have a solo from Artie, again your pick. After which, we'll be busting out a group number of Just the Way You Are, like what you did at Carol and Burt's wedding. Finn? Do you want to kick it off and divvy up each verse and chorus as evenly as possible? I want everyone to get their shot at solo singing here, to showcase everyone's individuality, but also our wide range of talent," Mr. Schue said. He looked expectantly at Rachel, hoping for an outburst.

"Mr. Schuester, I completely agree with your proposal." Everybody did a double take at the statement. "Most schools participating in the Nationals competition showcase one, maybe two, great singers, as opposed to where we will be displaying a variety of voices that are beautiful individually and find a way to cohere into one great sound. I approve."

There was a murmur of surprise around the room.

Sam, Finn, and Cody were the stragglers in the locker room after soccer practice, changing and relaying their relationship situations.

"Things are going great with Naydeen. I dunno guys, I feel like this might be the real deal," Cody said sheepishly, expecting heavy teasing from the other two.

"No, dude, I know what you mean. I've got the same going on with Quinn, how about you, Finn?"

"Same. Do you guys think it would be crazy if we... you know, like proposed to them? I mean, we're all turning eighteen this year, this is with girls we love, why not?"

Cody and Sam had the 'light bulb' expression on their faces as Finn said this. Cody was the next to suggest something.

"What if we propose in tandem sometime at Nationals?"

Sam nodded, "That's a good idea. Are you guys up for it? How's about we all go ring hunting once we're changed?"

The other two chipped in with a chorus of "Deal."

They all walked out with identical rings in felt boxes in their pockets. It proved that keeping them a secret proved harder than they thought, seeing as how all three of their girlfriends had their ways of accessing their lockers as well as their rooms, so they let Mr. Schuester in on the plan, asking that he keep a hold of them. Mr. Schuester went one step further in helping them.

"How about you guys do it between numbers? Finn and Cody, you can walk them out near the end of Sam and Quinn's duet, and at a specific line, you all whip out the rings and drop to one knee?"

The teens' eyes widened as they approved of the Spanish teacher's idea.

"Thanks, Mr. Schue!" they chimed as they rushed out.

The countdown to departure for Nationals had finally reached zero as the New Directions found themselves lined up at 6:30 a.m. loading onto the bus that would bring them to airport and after a short flight catch a shuttle from t in New York. Their performance slot wasn't for another two days, but the teams' reservations at the hotels provided the clubs with ample time to settle down into the swing of proceedings in New York, provide some down time to relax the performers, but most importantly ensure that all teams were accounted for well ahead of time. Transportation issues between the hotel and the theatre were nonexistent, seeing as how they were side-by-side. It was going to hopefully go off without a hitch. Two hours on a bus and a further two on a plane, plus the quarter hour shuttle ride later and they were in the hotel lobby, looking on as they saw other groups milling around the lobby.

Mike gulped: "Mr. Schue. They have glee club jackets. All of them."

"That's just so they can be identified easier. Trust me, if we get separated, just look for anyone not in those coats."

Principal Figgins, who had accompanied the trip along with the soccer team that was also lodging in the hotel, patted Will on the shoulder.

"Well, Schue, I'll admit I wouldn't have guessed you'd be here at this very moment coaching two teams competing in national competitions. That's another upside to the advanced reservations: that the soccer team is here in time for their games."

The next two days were spent spectating the soccer team's progress through the tournament, cruising to 2-0, 4-1, and 3-2 wins, followed by an intense 2-1 win in the semi-finals the Friday night. Cody and Sam's tallies were both at four goals apiece, with Mike and Puck each claiming singles and Julian also claiming one. That assured their place in the final with the New York state champions. Saturday morning, the Glee club went for a quick loosening swim at the hotel, before changing into their costumes and making their way backstage next door. They were a couple sets away. They all sat in silence, unlike their predecessors in this room, they were not gushing confidence, they were humble, as was Mr. Schuester's intention. However, the air of tension still lingered in the air, as Sam kept checking the tuning of his guitar every quarter of an hour.

Nobody noticed the nervous glances passing between Finn, Sam, and Cody as well as how they all unconsciously reached into their pockets, gripping the felt boxes for assurance. They were actually doing this. The silence was broken as the bell dinged over the P.A., a now-familiar signal to the group. They nodded a silent wish of luck to each other, and then made their way to the stage.

Sam took a deep breath and started strumming the song that brought him and the angel beside him together.

_Do you hear me? I'm talking to you  
Across the water across the deep blue ocean  
Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying_

Boy I hear you in my dreams  
I feel your whisper across the sea  
I keep you with me in my heart  
You make it easier when life gets hard

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
Lucky to be coming home again  
Ooh ooh ooh

They don't know how long it takes  
Waiting for a love like this  
Every time we say goodbye  
I wish we had one more kiss  
I'll wait for you I promise you, I will

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
[ From: . ]  
Lucky to be coming home again

Lucky we're in love in every way  
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed  
Lucky to be coming home someday

And so I'm sailing through the sea  
To an island where we'll meet  
You'll hear the music fill the air  
I'll put a flower in your hair

Though the breezes through trees  
Move so pretty you're all I see  
As the world keeps spinning 'round  
You hold me right here, right now  


At this point, Finn and Brittany slipped onto the stage to the right of Sam and Quinn and Cody and Naydeen to the left. Both the girls were utterly confused as they were dragged onto the stage by their boyfriends. As one, the boys three dropped to one knee and pulled out the boxes and opening them synchronized as Sam and Quinn kept singing. Quinn's eyes went wide as she kept singing and Brittany and Naydeen simply covered their mouths as this happened.

Seemingly as one, the girls all nodded and the boys put the rings on their fingers, Sam's ring adding to the promise ring that still sat there.

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
Lucky to have been where I have been  
Lucky to be coming home again_

I'm lucky we're in love in every way  
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed  
Lucky to be coming home someday

Ooh ooh ooh  
Ooh ooh ooh, ooh

At this point, the three girls were swaying in the arms of their masculine counterparts. As thunderous applause rang out in the theatre, the couples ran off-stage to give Artie the space for his solo. A guitar strumming accompanied by the other Gleeks' finger snaps accompanied Artie's song.

_On the floor of Tokyo  
Or down in London town to go, go  
With the record selection  
And the mirror's reflection  
I'm dancing with myself_

When there's no-one else in sight  
In the crowded lonely night  
Well I wait so long  
For my love vibration  
And I'm dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself  
Oh dancing with myself  
Well there's nothing to lose  
And there's nothing to prove  
I'll be dancing with myself

If I looked all over the world  
And there's every type of girl  
But your empty eyes  
Seem to pass me by  
Leave me dancing with myself

So let's sink another drink  
'Cause it'll give me time to think  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
And I'll be dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself  
Oh dancing with myself  
Well there's nothing to lose  
And there's nothing to prove  
I'll be dancing with myself

If I looked all over the world  
And there's every type of girl  
But your empty eyes  
Seem to pass me by  
Leave me dancing with myself

So let's sink another drink  
'Cause it'll give me time to think  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
And I'll be dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself  
Oh dancing with myself  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance

_[Scat]___

Dancing with myself  
Dancing with myself  
Dancing with myself  
Dancing with myself

If I looked all over the world  
And there's every type of girl  
But your empty eyes  
Seem to pass me by  
Leave me dancing with myself

So let's sink another drink  
'Cause it'll give me time to think  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
And I'll be dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself  
Oh dancing with myself  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance  
If I had the chance  
I'd ask the world to dance

And with the last line, he set himself on his back wheels, crossing his arms as the wheelchair's tiny support wheels above the back wheels held his chair as it was. More thunderous applause accompanied the end of this number. Artie nodded to his fellow Glee club members as they came over and he whispered some quick instructions. Cody ran over to the band and relayed the instructions to them.

Mr. Schue frowned at the change in song. Sure, this song came from the same night that they had performed the original choice for a song. However, he puzzled as to the last minute change to _Marry You_. He noticed they kept the choreography from the performance at the wedding.

_It's a beautiful night,  
We're looking for something dumb to do.  
Hey baby,  
I think I wanna marry you._

Is it the look in your eyes,  
Or is it this dancing juice?  
Who cares baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Well I know this little chapel on the boulevard we can go,  
No one will know,  
Come on girl.  
Who cares if we're trashed got a pocket full of cash we can blow,  
Shots of patron,  
And it's on girl.

Don't say no, no, no, no-no;  
Just say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah;  
And we'll go, go, go, go-go.  
If you're ready, like I'm ready.

Cause it's a beautiful night,  
We're looking for something dumb to do.  
Hey baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Is it the look in your eyes,  
Or is it this dancing juice?  
Who cares baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

I'll go get a ring let the choir bells sing like oooh,  
So whatcha wanna do?  
Let's just run girl.

If we wake up and you wanna break up that's cool.  
No, I won't blame you;  
It was fun girl.

Don't say no, no, no, no-no;  
Just say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah;  
And we'll go, go, go, go-go.  
If you're ready, like I'm ready.

Cause it's a beautiful night,  
We're looking for something dumb to do.  
Hey baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Is it the look in your eyes,  
Or is it this dancing juice?  
Who cares baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Just say I do,  
Tell me right now baby,  
Tell me right now baby. x2

Cause it's a beautiful night,  
We're looking for something dumb to do.  
Hey baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Is it the look in your eyes,  
Or is it this dancing juice?  
Who cares baby,  
I think I wanna marry you.

Their finale to this song generated the loudest roar of approval from the audience. Even better for a certain three male gleeks was the sight of their fiancés gazing in wonder at their rings. They whooped as they ran off-stage. They were the last act of the day. They needed only wait for the conferring of the votes. After a half hour, a woman walked up on stage and dully rattled off the order of the last 47 teams, leaving McKinley, Dalton, and the school that the soccer team were competing against later this evening. The latter was announced at having finished third, leaving the two Ohio schools to be announced for first and second. Both teams stood in straight lines, each member with their arms slung across their neighbours' shoulders and their heads hung low, waiting to hear the result.

"And this year's National Show Choir champions... McKinley High School!" And with that the New Directions' heads shot up, everybody's eyes wide and they could not believe their luck. They hurriedly accepted the trophy, everybody giving a rushed group-lift of the trophy. They rushed backstage and back to the hotel, ending up in Mr. Schue's room that he was sharing with Figgins, finding the McKinley principal there watching TV and presented him with the quite large trophy signifying their triumph. Figgins smiled and grabbed the trophy, setting it delicately beside his bed.

"Schue, you and your boys should hurry up, you have a half-hour to get to the field!"

***Badaboom Badabing! There's Chapter 8, out 22 hours after its predecessor. Not bad, eh? :P Anyways, up comes a soccer-heavy chapter to drink in the journey to the stadium and the setting and event of the game, etc. Sorry if I haven't been keeping that true to the whole 'drama' aspect of Glee, I just wanted this to be a little fluffy. Anyways, I hope to be posting 9 soon, so the wait shouldn't be too long! (don't count on it tomorrow, unless classes are cancelled [which I doubt D:]) Please give feedback, it keeps me motivated to churn out my best work possible! Until my next update, keep it classy, readers!***


	9. Chapter 9

***DISCLAIMER: I don't own Glee or any of the characters seen in the series! It all belongs to some awesome and rich people over at FOX! So, I think that my break from writing this fanfic has given me ample time to plan out what I was going to do from here on in. As I said at the end of the last chapter, this chapter is going to be soccer-heavy, but I think I might have some aftermath in Lima to wrap up the chapter. After this is the epilogue and that's me for the next while! I don't know if I'll be able to churn out another story of this one's proportions! It's been a great ride, guys! Thanks sosososo much for the support!***

Will Schuester was faced with a dilemma. Their bus to the stadium broke down. It would take them a half hour to get to the field on foot and that's how long they had to get there. So as a unit, they all jogged down the sidewalk, sprinting across intersections and they got there with about 5 minutes to spare before they needed to report. The game itself wasn't for another half-hour, but in that time, they needed to get some ball-work in before the game started. So they all rushed into their changeroom and the McKinley Spanish teacher beheld some of the fastest changing he had ever seen. By the time they needed to report in, the full team had their kits, cleats, and warm-up suits on. They all jogged out onto the pitch as Mr. Schuester let out several soccer balls, and they immediately passed the ball around. The signal went off for them to lineup for the national anthem and the hand shake. In the referee's hand was a golden stylized soccer ball and on a pedestal at the threshold of the pitch was the trophy itself.

Cody's eyes never left the trophy during the anthem, then he spun and led his team through the hand-shakes and they assumed their regular starting lineup, with all the players now ready to go on this cold November night. Most of McKinley's players wore undershirts and wool gloves. As the referee checked the last little details before kick-up, players were keeping warm by means of running on the spot, tuck-jumps or jumping jacks. Finally, the referee motioned for the home team to kick off in their all blue kits and off it went.

McKinley struggled in the first part of the game, on the back foot and looking flat from their warm up run to the stadium. They still managed to hold their own, but players were slipping over the surface of the pitch which was slick in the first 15 minutes, but soon after that was frozen solid. It was tough on the players as they were all nursing slight cramps as the half finished 0-0.

Mr. Schuester pulled out one of his motivational speeches at half time and inspired urgency into their play. They turned the tables on the New York outfit in the second half and were pressing them hard, having long spells of possession around the other team's box. At the 65th minute, Puck lifted the ball over the defence as Cody speeded through, pushing the ball around the keeper easily and making as if to follow the ball, only to find the keeper clutching at his ankle. He swivelled around with his arms raised at the referee, who blew the whistle and pointed to the spot. He spotted the ball up and slotted the ball bottom corner, fooling the goalie, who dove the other way. Cody was mobbed by his teammates as he stood on the spot, pumping his fists downwards. They jogged back to half as a unit and prepared to hold off for the last little bit.

That mentality meant that the opposition were all over them. Two minutes from the end of the standard ninety, the equaliser was scored. No one quite knew how it went in. They know that a shot went into a crowded box then pinballed around befor zipping past Finn. The other team didn't let up in their efforts, as three minutes later, they earned themselves a corner. Everybody was in the box, save for the corner taker and Cody, who stood a few feet away from the half line, being relayed instructions by Mr. Schuester. Even the other team's goalie had come up. The corner went in and was instantly grabbed by Finn, who promptly hurled it out Cody's way, who took a few steps to the center line before smashing a one-timed half volley which soared for goal. Time stood still as everyone watched the flight of the ball, all the players rooted to the spot in the McKinley end.

The McKinley supporters behind the other net went nuts all of a sudden and a few seconds later, the netting bulged to show that the ball had indeed gone in. 12 figures went to ground when that happened: the New York team as well as Cody who sunk down to his knees and was shouting his lungs out in triumph, shaking his fists. Soon enough, he found himself dogpiled by the whole McKinley team and bench and he faintly heard the final whistle blow. They all got up and trooped up to shake hands with the home team as the McKinley supporters were granted pitch access as the camera teams came on to cover the celebration.

Several of the camera crews went right up to Cody, who had a permanent grin plastered on his face as he gave the interview.

"So, Cody, how does it feel to not only have captained but also fired your team to National glory?"

"It's fantastic. It's great to know that you've led the first McKinley soccer team to win a national title. I know that our achievements this year are going to provide hard expectations in the future for our successors to live up to. A full undefeated season in all competitions is a really big deal, and very hard to achieve in any level. It's a funny game, soccer; I guess that's why we love it so much. I am extremely thankful to have the most amazing teammates ever and hopefully, we can stretch our awesome form into next year!"

"Finn Hudson, rumour has it that you and two teammates, Sam Evans and Cody Rheis, all successfully proposed to your girlfriends, is it true?"

"Uh... yeah... How did you guys know that?"

"Sam, how are you going to celebrate winning two national titles in the matter of four hours?"

"I'm going to go to my fiancé's room in the hotel we're staying at and spend the night with her... to put it in a more appropriate way for TV," he joked.

"Will Schuester, last year, your Glee Club was facing disbanding due to its lack of success, and here you are, bagging two National titles in one day, to what do you owe the success?"

"Well, a good friend of mine, you may know her, Sue Sylvester? Anyways, her constant parading of her countless national cheerleading trophies had gotten to me and I swore to myself that by still using my methods, I would begin to build a trophy collection to rival hers. But most of all, I owe it to my soon-to-be-wife, Holly Holiday, who stuck through the stressing times with me, gave me advice and counsel, and is bearing my child. I love you Holly!"

An hour later, the team walked into the hotel, clutching the trophy and still all adorned with confetti and streamers. The Glee clubbers went along with the trophies to the room where Artie and the girls were waiting for them, singing 'We Are The Champions' as they walked in. The girls all tackled their boyfriends, talking about how they watched the game on TV.

"-That last minute volley was AWESOME, babe!" Naydeen told Cody glowingly. Cody noticed the gleam in her eye, one that he'd seen before. How could he forget it?

"Do you get bored standing around for the majority of the game?" Brittany inquired of Finn.

"You have to be alert, because you never when the ball will be heading your way."

They spent the rest of the evening in that room, ordering a few pizzas and watching some movies that Mr. Schuester had brought on the TV (it was hooked up to Mr. Schue's laptop). They were all grouped on and around the huge bed. About an hour and a half into the movie, the three newly-engaged couples were sitting with the boys still up and stroking the hair of their fiancés, who were all sleeping peacefully with their heads rested on the chests of their male counterparts.

_Dancing in the Rain_ was the movie playing, and at one point, Mr. Schue walked over to his laptop and slowly faded down the volume before shutting down his laptop and turning off the TV and slipping out the room, but not before a proud glance back at the assembled sleeping Glee clubbers.

The next morning, they all seemed to wake simultaneously to nothing in particular. The guys slowly sat up, giving their significant others a chance to do so as well, rather audibly inhaling nasally as they did so. A symphony of yawns ensued as they stretched out the kinks they had developed over the night.

Mike blinked away his sleepiness before noticing the two trophies sitting on the table in the room.

"We really did it, eh?" Mike said.

"We came to New York and came away with full spoils," Sam said, leaning down and giving Quinn a quick kiss before jumping to his feet and making for his room, followed by the other guys.

They spent the day in the city, heads held high as they walked the streets, going everywhere as a proud unit and having a great time. Later that day, they checked out of the hotel and caught their flight to Columbus, before getting a ride back to Lima. Waiting in the parking lot were all the parents of the Glee Clubbers and the soccer team. Applause rang out as they held aloft their trophies and medals in the case of the soccer players.

"Hey everyone!" Mr. Schue called after them as they went to their respective parents, and they all turned back. "Winter fair's in a few days; I expect the Glee club to come up with a few numbers to put on and the soccer players to attend, okay?"

They all reacted as they had all forgotten about the upcoming fair. It was in a way your typical carnival, save that it was winter-themed and the centerpiece of it all was the conversion of the snow-covered football field into a mazy snow warzone. In the days leading up to it, challenges were issued, pacts made, betrayals discovered, oaths sworn, all to better the occasion of the upcoming war. It also meant that some people could get away with a stray snowball at someone out of the 'zone' and claim bad aim. The Glee club decided to spend the day as a unit, having fun but also protecting one another from the inevitability of a maelstrom of snowballs aimed their way.

When they were back in school after their trophy haul, the Glee kids noticed a certain change in the respect towards them. Not once that day was a slushie thrown at a Gleek. Not a snide comment. In fact, congratulations were offered at every turn to the successful group. Yet, the talk of the student body was not focused on the Glee club's exploit's, nor the Soccer Team's, but rather on three certain items of jewellery. News of the engagement of the three Glee couples spread like wildfire. Guys found it corny, girls wished their boyfriends would be romantic and take the step, and the couples in question couldn't give a damn. It still surprised them when Mr. Schuester had had them paged down to his room at lunch.

"Hey guys, take a seat. So Holly and I have fixed on April 6th as a wedding date, and our budget's a bit tight with the place, car, Glee and all, and then Holly had a brilliant idea. How's about we all hold our ceremonies in tandem? I've checked and you'll all be of age by then, and that way, we can all pool resources to have the dream weddings we've all wanted. How does that sound to you?"

Cody piped up, absent-mindedly: "April 6th is my birthday..."

Naydeen nudged him: "Then it'll be the perfect birthday present, won't it?"

He smiled at her then turned back to the Glee coach: "We're in."

After silent discussion in the other two couples, they all chipped in some variant of an affirmative. Mr. Schuester was grinning ear to ear: "Thanks SO much guys. Holly and I both appreciate it. Anyways, I'll let you guys go bask in the carnival eve atmosphere."

The next day, the Glee clubbers walked from booth to booth, all cheering on a fellow member as they tried their hand at a game. Once they had done the rounds, they stuck to walking the perimeter of the war zone, following the course of the track. Some were clutching hard-earned stuffed toys, other hot beverages and Finn and Brittany a bright pink cotton candy that they mowed down on together.

After a few laps, they walked off the track and up the hill beside the field, sitting on its crest and surveying the view of a lively carnival, as well as the carnage of a snowball fight of epic proportions. They all watched as a faculty round went on, Mr. Schuester eliminating all his co-workers only to be blind-sided by a white-camouflaged Sue Sylvester, who had navigated the terrain unseen and seemed to relish in the view of a perfect snowball colliding with Mr. Schuester's curls.

Cody and Sam suddenly jumped, swinging at their backs while exclaiming in a falsettos as Mike and Puck ran away laughing. When they finally got the snow that hadn't melted out of their shirts, Mike and Puck were long gone, and so they resignedly stayed where they were.

Quinn was giggling at Sam's sulky demeanour: "You should've seen your face!" And with that she started wildly patting at her back and imitating Sam: "Oh! Oh! Quinn, get it out! Aaaaah!" and with that she was giggling again, until she got a face full of snow from a laughing Sam.

Mouth agape, she wiped away the snow and quickly made a snowball before hurling it Sam's way, only for him to duck and see the snowball comically knock off what was left of Finn and Brittany's cotton candy. Even funnier was Finn reaching out, tongue stretched out and eyes closed to take a bite. Upon noticing the absence of the cotton candy and Brittany pointing a blaming finger at Quinn, he sent a return shot, which ended up nailing Cody in the back of the head due to lack of aim. And with that, a full- scale snowball war erupted between the Glee club, all of them laughing the whole time.

They all collapsed into the snow a while later, all the while still laughing.

Naydeen leaned over to Cody: "We should make snow angels!"

Cody, not missing a beat, replied: "You already have by leaving your impression in the snow..."

"Aww, that's cute... you're such a pansy!" his fiancée snorted back at him, blushing nonetheless and capturing his lips in hers.

When they separated, Cody spoke up: "So, to celebrate the three engagements, I'm holding a Glee party at my place tonight from 7! Be there!"

They all cheered.

"All right, Cody. Fridge is stocked with food and booze. I don't want it empty, just some of it gone, when I get back tomorrow afternoon, alright? I'm happy for you and I hope this party goes well! Oh, and, umm... if you and Naydeen, you know..."

"UNCLE JOSH! I really don't want to hear it!"

"Just... umm... make sure to keep away from food preparation surfaces!" Cody's uncle said, before bolting out the door.

"GAAAH!" the teen exclaimed. Living with his uncle was awesome. He acted as much like a parent as a wingman. One minute he'd scold him about being out late, then the other wanting to know about some of the... finer aspects of the night, as demonstrated by his goodbye. It was all cheek-in-tongue, though, an on-going joke between the two.

Cody breathed deep breaths as he went around, straightening things that didn't need to be, checking the inventory for the umpteenth time, all trying to pass the time until the Glee Clubbers started arriving. Finally, the doorbell went and Cody opened, to see Naydeen, Sam, Quinn, Finn, Brittany, Mike, Tina, Santana, Puck, and Andrea standing there.

"Mercedes took a rain check and Artie's outside," Finn announced as Cody stepped aside to let them all in.

"'Kay, thanks. I'll help him." Cody grabbed his winter jacket and slipped on his boots, going outside to see Artie struggling through the snow.

"Hey, Artie. Why didn't anyone help you?" Cody asked as he went over and pushed Artie up to the steps then lifting Artie and the chair up them.

"Thanks. I dunno, they all wanted to get into the warmth and I wasn't worth the wait for warmth?" Artie suggested. Cody stopped him.

"Artie, bro. _Never_ think that. Never undersell yourself, bro. I'd _happily_ stand out in the cold for hours just for your sake, man. It's just a mental lapse of theirs buddy. Besides, a Glee Club party isn't a party without you!"

Artie grinned as he wheeled through the door. He turned back to Cody.

"Oh, yeah, and Rachel and Mercedes-"

"Aren't going to be here. Yeah I know. Well, Mercedes I heard. I just figured since Rachel has this freaky obsession with being early to anything Glee and her absence at the moment meant she wasn't going to make it. Thanks, Artie. Anyways, make yourself at home, buddy."

Cody walked over to the fridge and pulled out a half dozen beers and tossed them around, Sam and Quinn refusing, before grabbing two more, him and Andrea both staying sober. Quinn's reason was the consequences following a certain incident that occurred due to her inebriation, and since then swore to never drink or ingest drugs, for she wanted complete control over her actions as much as possible. Sam stayed off partly because of Quinn and partly because he was driving people back tomorrow, and the others agreed that attempting to drive while hung-over during winter wasn't worth it. Cody had also sworn off booze, but because he'd known people whose lives were ruined due to the drinks and Naydeen was supporting his stance.

The night went off without a hitch, unless you count the fact that all the drinkers were passed out by 11 and the sober couples had snuck up to rooms.

Cody laughed as he thought back on the night's events as he laid there with Naydeen draped delicately over his bare chest. Naydeen lifted her head up and frowned at him sleepily before resuming her position, Cody running his hand through her hair.

"-Do you, William Schuester, take Holly Holiday to be your lawfully wedded wife, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Holly Holiday, take William Schuester to be your lawfully wedded husband, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Finn Hudson, take Brittany Susan Pierce to be your lawfully wedded wife, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Brittany Susan Pierce, take Finn Hudson to be your lawfully wedded husband, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Sam Evans, take Quinn Fabray to be your lawfully wedded wife, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Quinn Fabray, take Sam Evans to be your lawfully wedded husband, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Cody Rheis, take Naydeen Sharpe to be your lawfully wedded wife, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Naydeen Sharpe, take Cody Rheis to be your lawfully wedded husband, through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

"By the power vested in me by the state of Ohio, I now pronounce you, husbands and wives. You may now kiss your brides."


	10. Epilogue

**So, here we are. This is the last of this fanfic, nothing about my disclaimer has changed from the previous ones: I don't own anything to do with Glee, they all belong to FOX Studios and the great minds behind the inception of the series.**

"All right, so don't forget your Vocab. Quiz on Monday guys," Mr. Schue said as the bell rang, signalling the end of the day.

He packed up his marking and left his classroom, heading for the choir room, where he was going to meet with colleagues.

Seated in the risers were about 14 teachers who sat there on a regular basis some 10 years ago. He looked around at the former Glee clubbers, contemplating their current positions.

Rachel had worked her way up to be the Head of the performance arts department and also was a vice-principal. Finn was the Physical Education department head and basketball coach. Beside him was Brittany, or rather Mrs. Hudson, who was ran the Dance classes with Santana and was joint- Cheerio coach with her. Puck was Football coach as well as one of two guitar teachers at the school, the other being Sam. Beside the latter was Mrs. Evans, the once-head cheerleader now Head of the English department. Vocals classes were run by Tina and Mercedes. Tina's husband Mike was the main Biology teacher at the school. Artie was the Business Tech and Geometry teacher. Finally, there were Cody and Naydeen. Cody was a French and Drama teacher and the coach of the soccer team alongside Mr. Schuester, leading their teams to title after title after title. Naydeen was a History and Geography teacher at the school, as well as Cody's heavily pregnant wife.

"Hey guys, it's great to see you all here. It seems terrible that we didn't really get the chance to hang out as a group like this in about ten years or so, well, minus all the weddings," Mr. Schue said as they all nodded, some smiling at the mention of the weddings. "But enough dwelling on the past! We live in the present!"

And with that, they cheered and all came down from the bleachers as Mr. Schue hit the play button on his iPod and a playlist of every song they performed played out. The party was awesome, with punch and snacks at a side table and everyone dancing and singing, and some talking in clusters.

Brittany and Finn were arm in arm as they talked to Cody and Naydeen, "Yeah! If you had told me ten years ago that today I would have two of the most wonderful children ever, I would've called you a dork," said Brittany, as unperturbed as ever.

"Yeah, how are Eric and Christine?" Cody asked. The two couples were rather close, and Cody and Naydeen had even babysat the two Hudsons while their parents were out on several occasions, and so they were considered to be the closest aunt and uncle in the Glee family for the kids.

"Well, Eric's just starting Kindergarten and Chrissy's starting Daycare. It all just seems to be going by so quickly," Finn said in wonder, tearing up a bit in pride for his son and daughter.

Brittany turned to Naydeen, all business: "So, do you two know what gender your baby's going to be?"

There was a brief non-verbal exchange between the two, as if trying to decide who should break the exciting news. Finn and Brittany figured that Naydeen won the honours owing to the fact that she was the one lugging around their offspring.

"Well, it's fraternal twins, a boy and a girl, and we've decided to name them Will and Kim," Naydeen said, her voice a little strangled with emotion as she beamed her pride at their news.

A round of hugs ensued as congratulations were given from Finn and Brittany, slowly followed by the other ex-Gleeks as it turned out that they had all eaves-dropped on their news. Will came over to them and embraced them, fighting back tears as he realised the fact that he was the namesake for their first son.

Puck just _had_ to ruin the atmosphere by saying: "Great. There goes that name. We can't necessarily have a whole generation of Wills going around, can we? I guess Andrea and I will have to settle on Drizzle, because she's also got a little buddy on the way!" Everybody chuckled at the mention of Finn's idea for a baby name back when Quinn had been pregnant (for the first time) and also the fact that Brittany had Eric's middle name be Drizzle, just for Finn. The laughter turned into more excitement as the woman rushed forward in a wave to congratulate the two.

Mike leaned over to Mr. Schuester: "I think we've got enough girls' screams and pregnancy stories to last us a lifetime, don't you think, Mr. Schue?"

The two chuckled and bumped fists. Quinn and Sam came into the room, after being absent for a half hour as they relieved the babysitter and brought little Meg with them. Only 2 years old, she looked like Quinn save for the mouth and the eyes, which were a beautiful balance of the two parents' eye colours: piercing blue with hazel flecks.

The adults formed a corridor as Quinn set her down on her feet. She slowly waddled forward, to much baby talk and encouragement from the assembled Glee clubbers, finally stopping in front of Mr. Schuester, who hoisted her up and brought her around the room, referring to himself as 'Grampa Schue'.

Puck walked over and nudged Cody, who leaned towards him to hear Puck's whisper: "You know what we should do with this whole baby boom?"

"What?"

"Baby races. Think of it. We've got Andrea who's due in about 7 months, Naydeen's due for twins in a couple of weeks. Tina and Mike have Brian. This could work _so_ beautifully!"

Cody grinned and whispered back: "Keep me posted. Maybe we could do it as a fundraiser for a school event, have the students bet on the winning baby."

"Good thinking, my man," Puck said, backing away and tapping the side of his nose with his index finger, his eyebrow arched mischievously, as he went back to Andrea, who caught the look.

"What evil scheme have you just put in motion, Puck?" she asked, somewhat amused, somewhat exasperated.

"Well… I can't tell you much at the moment, but let's just hope Drizzle here inherits my athleticism," Puck whispered, crouching to get level with his wife's stomach.

"Hey! I'm athletic too!" she said indignantly.

"We've been over this, babe, sex isn't a sport!"

She sniffed, and replied: "Well, if it were, then you'd find that we're not going to play any sports together at all, say… for a very long time?"

Everybody laughed as they recognized Andrea's ability to out-Puck Puck. The laughter died down as Naydeen gasped. Everybody looked her way, but her husband beat them to the question.

"Honey, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

She looked back up slowly: "My water just broke."

THE END

**I realize that's a cliffhanger for some, but that's pretty much how I wanted to wrap it up, and that this chapter is significantly shorter than its predecessors, but I thought this was the best way to wrap it up once and for all. If anyone wants to branch off any 'life after' stories from this, by all means, do so and feel free to PM me if you want any ideas/suggestions/etc. This has been so great to get such good support on the story, and the reviews I've gotten on the site have re-bolstered my want to pursue writing in some way, so this is my final, HUGE thanks to all the readers, you guys are what made this story special, you guys made me want to put forth my best writing and I do hope that I have. I have a future Smallville fic lined up, and I think my Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Star Wars fic is pretty much dead, so I'm going to just leave it for awhile and see if anyone reviews it further. Keep it classy, readers.**


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